TWI803424B - Dynamic image generating method and dynamic image sensor thereof - Google Patents

Dynamic image generating method and dynamic image sensor thereof Download PDF

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TWI803424B
TWI803424B TW111134088A TW111134088A TWI803424B TW I803424 B TWI803424 B TW I803424B TW 111134088 A TW111134088 A TW 111134088A TW 111134088 A TW111134088 A TW 111134088A TW I803424 B TWI803424 B TW I803424B
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exposure
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long
exposure time
image
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TW202412507A (en
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印秉宏
周永銘
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大陸商廣州印芯半導體技術有限公司
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    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N23/00Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
    • H04N23/70Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
    • H04N23/741Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene by increasing the dynamic range of the image compared to the dynamic range of the electronic image sensors
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N23/00Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
    • H04N23/70Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
    • H04N23/73Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene by influencing the exposure time
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N23/00Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
    • H04N23/70Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
    • H04N23/76Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene by influencing the image signals
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N25/00Circuitry of solid-state image sensors [SSIS]; Control thereof
    • H04N25/50Control of the SSIS exposure
    • H04N25/57Control of the dynamic range
    • H04N25/58Control of the dynamic range involving two or more exposures
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N23/00Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
    • H04N23/70Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
    • H04N23/71Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N25/00Circuitry of solid-state image sensors [SSIS]; Control thereof
    • H04N25/50Control of the SSIS exposure
    • H04N25/57Control of the dynamic range
    • H04N25/58Control of the dynamic range involving two or more exposures
    • H04N25/581Control of the dynamic range involving two or more exposures acquired simultaneously
    • H04N25/583Control of the dynamic range involving two or more exposures acquired simultaneously with different integration times

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Abstract

The present invention relates to a dynamic image generating method and a dynamic image sensor thereof. The dynamic image sensor includes a first exposure pixel, a second exposure pixel and an image processing module. The dynamic image sensor applies the dynamic image generating method, which generates the short-exposure image signal to be tested by exposing the short-exposure time to be tested through the first exposure pixel, and the second exposure pixel exposes the to-be-measured long-exposure time to generate the to-be-measured long-exposure image information. The image processing module confirms whether the short-exposure image signal to be measured and the long-exposure image signal to be measured are higher than the lower limit of pinching or lower than the upper limit of pinching. If so, the optimal short exposure time and the optimal long exposure time are generated; otherwise, increase the short exposure time to be measured by the short exposure fixed value or decrease the long exposure time to be measured by the long exposure fixed value, and repeat the automatic exposure time method until the optimal short exposure time and the optimal long exposure time are obtained.

Description

動態影像產生方法及其動態影像感測器Dynamic image generation method and dynamic image sensor thereof

本發明係有關於一種動態影像產生方法,特別係關於一種高偵率及高動態範圍之動態影像產生方法及其動態影像感測器。The present invention relates to a dynamic image generation method, in particular to a dynamic image generation method with high detection rate and high dynamic range and a dynamic image sensor thereof.

近年自駕車產業的需求日趨蓬勃,對自駕車而言,用於偵測即時道路狀況的影像感測器是必備元件。目前,應用於偵測即時道路狀況的影像感測器又以動態視覺感測器(Dynamic Vision Sensor, DVS)為主流,其原因在於,動態視覺感測器是以事件(event)為單位記錄影像資訊。這種基於動態事件的感測器使得機器的自主性更加接近現實,因而適用於自動駕駛車領域中基於視覺的高速應用。In recent years, the demand for the self-driving car industry has become increasingly vigorous. For self-driving cars, image sensors for detecting real-time road conditions are essential components. Currently, the dynamic vision sensor (Dynamic Vision Sensor, DVS) is the mainstream image sensor used to detect real-time road conditions. The reason is that the dynamic vision sensor records images in units of events. Information. This dynamic event-based sensor brings machine autonomy closer to reality, making it suitable for vision-based high-speed applications in the field of autonomous vehicles.

然而,在道路駕駛過程中,偶爾會發生照明程度在短時間之內劇烈改變的情形,從而造成影像感測器局部(或全部)暫時性的產生過度曝光(或曝光不足)的問題。在此短暫的時間內,自駕車的影像辨識演算法在面對細節不足的畫面,無法做出正確的物件偵測,因而提高發生事故的風險。However, during driving on the road, occasional situations where the illumination level changes drastically within a short period of time may cause a partial (or entire) temporary over-exposure (or under-exposure) of the image sensor. During this short period of time, the image recognition algorithm of the self-driving car cannot make correct object detection in the face of insufficient detail images, thus increasing the risk of accidents.

因此,如何優化影像感測器,使得影像感測器在極高的幀率之下可以快速地調整曝光程度,以產生最佳的曝光時間,並透過對同一幀照片進行色調映射(tone mapping)及曝光融合(exposure fusion)產生高動態範圍影像,使其影像細節在面對各種照度的環境下皆可具備足夠的清晰度以及辨識度,係為研發人員亟待解決的問題之一。Therefore, how to optimize the image sensor so that the image sensor can quickly adjust the exposure level at a very high frame rate to produce the best exposure time, and through tone mapping of the same frame of photos And exposure fusion to generate high dynamic range images, so that the image details can have sufficient clarity and recognition under various illumination environments, which is one of the problems that developers need to solve urgently.

是以,本案發明人在觀察上述缺失後,而遂有本發明之產生。Therefore, the inventor of this case came up with the present invention after observing the above-mentioned deficiency.

本發明的目的在於提供一種動態影像感測器,藉由第一曝光像素曝光短曝光時間,同時第二曝光像素曝光長曝光時間,並通過色調映射以及曝光融合產生高動態範圍影像資訊。如此一來,本發明利用長短曝光陣列的設計,在同一幀的時間內就可以將不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像資訊進行曝光融合,達成增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效,以提升辨識演算法針對動態影像進行辨識時的準確度,降低發生事故的風險。The object of the present invention is to provide a dynamic image sensor, by exposing the first exposure pixels for a short exposure time, while the second exposure pixels are exposed for a long exposure time, and generating high dynamic range image information through tone mapping and exposure fusion. In this way, the present invention utilizes the design of long and short exposure arrays to expose and fuse image information that is exposed at different times and with different exposure times within the same frame time, achieving the effects of enhancing the clarity and brightness of moving images to improve The accuracy of the identification algorithm for identification of dynamic images reduces the risk of accidents.

本發明的又一目的在於提供一種動態影像產生方法,其係藉由影像處理模組將待測短曝光時間增加短曝光定值形成新的待測短曝光時間,或者將待測長曝光時間減少長曝光定值形成新的待測長曝光時間,以產生最佳短曝光時間以及最佳長曝光時間。藉此,本發明用空間解析度換取額外的曝光資訊,有利於在短時間內收斂至最佳曝光時間,使得高動態範圍影像資訊曝光良好。此外,透過上下範圍同時夾擠之運算方式,使得本發明之自動曝光時間方法可以實現一種動態運算的方式產生最佳曝光時間,以適應各種拍攝環境,同時降低產生最佳曝光時間的運算時間,大幅提升本發明之效率以及適用性。Another object of the present invention is to provide a dynamic image generation method, which uses the image processing module to increase the short exposure time to be measured by a short exposure fixed value to form a new short exposure time to be measured, or reduce the long exposure time to be measured The long exposure setting value forms a new long exposure time to be measured, so as to produce the best short exposure time and the best long exposure time. In this way, the present invention exchanges the spatial resolution for additional exposure information, which is beneficial to converge to the optimal exposure time in a short time, so that the exposure of high dynamic range image information is good. In addition, through the calculation method of simultaneously pinching the upper and lower ranges, the automatic exposure time method of the present invention can realize a dynamic calculation method to generate the optimal exposure time to adapt to various shooting environments, and at the same time reduce the calculation time for generating the optimal exposure time. The efficiency and applicability of the present invention are greatly improved.

本發明的另一目的在於提供一種動態影像產生方法,其係透過二值化處理短曝影像訊號以及長曝影像訊號,並將二值化後的短曝影像訊號乘上短曝權重,二值化後的長曝影像訊號乘上長曝權重,其中,長曝權重大於短曝權重。藉此,解決低亮度環境中,動態影像不清晰的問題,使得原本像素中高亮度者值愈高、低亮度者值愈低,讓影像中的物體輪廓對比增加,進一步提升動態影像之清晰度。Another object of the present invention is to provide a dynamic image generation method, which processes the short-exposure image signal and the long-exposure image signal through binarization, and multiplies the binarized short-exposure image signal by the short-exposure weight. The transformed long-exposure image signal is multiplied by the long-exposure weight, wherein the long-exposure weight is greater than the short-exposure weight. This solves the problem of unclear dynamic images in low-brightness environments, making the pixels with high brightness have higher values and those with low brightness lower, which increases the contrast of object outlines in the image and further improves the clarity of dynamic images.

為達上述目的,本發明提供一種高幀率高動態範之動態影像產生方法,其係應用於一動態影像感測器接收動態範圍之動態影像的環境中,該動態影像感測器包含一第一曝光像素、一第二曝光像素以及一影像處理模組,該第一曝光像素以及該第二曝光像素耦接於該影像處理模組,該動態影像產生方法包含下列步驟:一同時曝光步驟,該第一曝光像素曝光一短曝光時間產生一短曝影像訊號,同時該第二曝光像素曝光一長曝光時間產生一長曝影像訊號;一色調映射步驟,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像訊號以及該長曝影像訊號執行一色調映射(tone mapping)演算法,產生一短曝影像資訊以及一長曝影像資訊;一曝光融合步驟,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像資訊以及該長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合(exposure fusion),產生一高動態範圍影像資訊;以及一輸出步驟,該影像處理模組輸出該高動態範圍影像資訊。In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for generating a dynamic image with a high frame rate and a high dynamic range, which is applied in an environment where a dynamic image sensor receives a dynamic image in a dynamic range, and the dynamic image sensor includes a first Exposure pixels, a second exposure pixel and an image processing module, the first exposure pixel and the second exposure pixel are coupled to the image processing module, the dynamic image generation method includes the following steps: a simultaneous exposure step, the The first exposure pixel is exposed for a short exposure time to generate a short exposure image signal, and the second exposure pixel is exposed for a long exposure time to generate a long exposure image signal; a tone mapping step, the image processing module generates the short exposure image signal And the long-exposure image signal executes a tone mapping (tone mapping) algorithm to generate a short-exposure image information and a long-exposure image information; an exposure fusion step, the image processing module uses the short-exposure image information and the long-exposure image information Exposure fusion is performed on the image information to generate a high dynamic range image information; and an output step, the image processing module outputs the high dynamic range image information.

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法,其中,該色調映射演算法係選自伽馬曲線(Gamma curve)演算法以及專業色彩編碼系統曲線(Academy Color Encoding System curve)演算法其中之一。Preferably, according to the dynamic image generation method of the present invention, the tone mapping algorithm is selected from one of the Gamma curve algorithm and the Academy Color Encoding System curve algorithm .

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法,其中,於該同時曝光步驟之前,該動態影像產生方法進一步包含一自動曝光時間方法,該自動曝光時間方法包含下列步驟:一測試步驟,該第一曝光像素曝光一待測短曝光時間,同時該第二曝光像素曝光一待測長曝光時間,以產生一待測短曝影像訊號以及一待測長曝影像訊號;一判定步驟,該影像處理模組確認該待測短曝影像訊號是否高於一夾擠下限,並確認該待測長曝影像訊號是否低於一夾擠上限;一調整步驟,該影像處理模組將該待測短曝光時間增加一短曝光定值以產生新的該待測短曝光時間,或者將該待測長曝光時間減少一長曝光定值以產生新的該待測長曝光時間;一最佳曝光時間產生步驟,該影像處理模組根據該待測短曝光時間以及該待測長曝光時間產生一最佳短曝光時間以及一最佳長曝光時間;其中,若該判定步驟判定該待測短曝影像訊號高於該夾擠下限,並且該待測長曝影像訊號低於該夾擠上限,該判定步驟結束後執行該最佳曝光時間產生步驟,且該同時曝光步驟中,該第一曝光像素曝光該最佳短曝光時間,同時該第二曝光像素曝光該最佳長曝光時間;反之,該判定步驟結束後執行該調整步驟並重複執行該測試步驟。Preferably, the dynamic image generation method according to the present invention, wherein, before the simultaneous exposure step, the dynamic image generation method further includes an automatic exposure time method, and the automatic exposure time method includes the following steps: a testing step, the first An exposure pixel is exposed for a short exposure time to be measured, and the second exposure pixel is exposed for a long exposure time to be measured, so as to generate a short exposure image signal to be measured and a long exposure image signal to be measured; a determination step, the image processing The module confirms whether the signal of the short-exposure image to be tested is higher than a pinch lower limit, and confirms whether the signal of the long-exposure image to be tested is lower than a pinch upper limit; Time increases a short exposure fixed value to produce the new short exposure time to be measured, or reduces the long exposure time to be measured by a long exposure fixed value to generate a new long exposure time to be measured; an optimal exposure time generation step , the image processing module generates an optimal short exposure time and an optimal long exposure time according to the short exposure time to be measured and the long exposure time to be measured; wherein, if the determination step determines that the signal of the short exposure image to be measured is high When the pinching lower limit is reached, and the long-exposure image signal to be measured is lower than the pinching upper limit, the optimal exposure time generating step is performed after the determination step is completed, and in the simultaneous exposure step, the first exposure pixel exposes the optimal exposure time. The optimal short exposure time, while the second exposure pixel is exposed to the optimal long exposure time; on the contrary, the adjustment step is executed after the determination step and the testing step is repeatedly executed.

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法,其中,該動態影像感測器內儲存有一短曝光時間上限值以及一長曝光時間下限值,該短曝光時間上限值係為該待測短曝光時間的最大值,該長曝光時間下限值係為該待測長曝光時間的最小值。Preferably, according to the dynamic image generation method of the present invention, wherein, a short exposure time upper limit and a long exposure time lower limit are stored in the dynamic image sensor, and the short exposure time upper limit is the The maximum value of the short exposure time is measured, and the lower limit value of the long exposure time is the minimum value of the long exposure time to be measured.

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法,其中,若該待測短曝光時間為該短曝光時間上限值,且該判定步驟中該待測短曝影像訊號仍低於該夾擠下限,則該自動曝光時間方法進一步包含有一疊加步驟,該疊加步驟系為該影像處理模組將該待測短曝影像訊號進行疊加,以產生該短曝影像訊號。Preferably, in the dynamic image generation method according to the present invention, if the short exposure time to be measured is the upper limit of the short exposure time, and the signal of the short exposure image to be measured is still lower than the lower limit of pinching in the determining step , the automatic exposure time method further includes a superposition step, the superposition step is for the image processing module to superimpose the short-exposure image signal to be tested to generate the short-exposure image signal.

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法,其中,該動態影像感測器進一步包含有一亮度感測模組,其係耦接於該影像處理模組,該亮度感測模組係用於感測該動態影像感測器所處環境的亮度,該曝光時間調整方法進一步包含有一上下限調整步驟,該影像處理模組係根據該亮度感測模組所感測之亮度調整該夾擠下限以及該夾擠上限,當亮度感測模組感測之亮度低於一低亮度值,則對應地降低該夾擠下限,當該亮度感測模組感測之亮度高於一高亮度值,則對應地升高該夾擠上限。Preferably, according to the dynamic image generation method of the present invention, the dynamic image sensor further includes a brightness sensing module, which is coupled to the image processing module, and the brightness sensing module is used for Sensing the brightness of the environment where the dynamic image sensor is located, the exposure time adjustment method further includes an upper and lower limit adjustment step, the image processing module adjusts the pinching lower limit according to the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module and The pinching upper limit, when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is lower than a low brightness value, then correspondingly reduce the pinching lower limit, when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is higher than a high brightness value, then The pinch upper limit is raised correspondingly.

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法,其中,該色調映射步驟包含有:一臨界值產生步驟,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像訊號之該等像素值取平均值產生一短曝亮度臨界值,並將該長曝影像訊號之該等像素值取平均值產生一長曝亮度臨界值;一高動態範圍合成步驟,該影像處理模組根據該短曝亮度臨界值,將該短曝影像訊號中高於該短曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為1,並將該短曝影像訊號中低於或等於該短曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為0,該影像處理模組根據該長曝亮度臨界值,將該長曝影像訊號中高於該長曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為1,並將該長曝影像訊號中低於或等於該長曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為0;一加權計算步驟,該影像處理模組將二值化後的該短曝影像訊號乘上一短曝權重,該影像處理模組將二值化後的該長曝影像訊號乘上一長曝權重,其中,該長曝權重大於該短曝權重。Preferably, according to the dynamic image generation method of the present invention, the tone mapping step includes: a critical value generation step, the image processing module averages the pixel values of the short-exposure image signal to generate a short Exposure brightness threshold, and average the pixel values of the long-exposure image signal to generate a long-exposure brightness threshold; a high dynamic range synthesis step, the image processing module according to the short-exposure brightness threshold, the The pixel values in the short-exposure image signal that are higher than the short-exposure brightness threshold are defined as 1, and the pixel values in the short-exposure image signal that are lower than or equal to the short-exposure brightness threshold are defined as 0, and the image The processing module defines the pixel values in the long-exposure image signal higher than the long-exposure brightness threshold as 1 according to the long-exposure brightness threshold, and defines the pixel values in the long-exposure image signal as being lower than or equal to the long-exposure brightness The pixel values of the critical value are defined as 0; a weighting calculation step, the image processing module multiplies the binarized short-exposure image signal by a short-exposure weight, and the image processing module multiplies the binarized short-exposure image signal The long-exposure image signal is multiplied by a long-exposure weight, wherein the long-exposure weight is greater than the short-exposure weight.

又,為達上述目的,本發明係根據上述動態影像產生方法為基礎,進一步提供一種高幀率高動態範圍之動態影像感測器,其係應用於接收動態範圍之動態影像的環境中,該動態影像感測器包含有:一感測陣列,其係包含複數個第一曝光像素以及複數個第二曝光像素,該等第一曝光像素具有一短曝光時間,該等第二曝光像素具有一長曝光時間;一影像處理模組,其係耦接於該感測陣列;其中,該第一曝光像素曝光該短曝光時間產生一短曝影像訊號,同時該第二曝光像素曝光該長曝光時間產生一長曝影像訊號,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像訊號以及該長曝影像訊號執行一色調映射演算法,產生一短曝影像資訊以及一長曝影像資訊,並且該影像處理模組將該短曝影像資訊以及該長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合,產生一高動態範圍影像資訊。Moreover, in order to achieve the above object, the present invention further provides a dynamic image sensor with a high frame rate and high dynamic range based on the above dynamic image generation method, which is applied in an environment for receiving dynamic images with a dynamic range. The dynamic image sensor includes: a sensing array including a plurality of first exposure pixels and a plurality of second exposure pixels, the first exposure pixels have a short exposure time, and the second exposure pixels have a Long exposure time; an image processing module, which is coupled to the sensing array; wherein, the first exposure pixel is exposed to the short exposure time to generate a short exposure image signal, while the second exposure pixel is exposed to the long exposure time generating a long exposure image signal, the image processing module performs a tone mapping algorithm on the short exposure image signal and the long exposure image signal to generate a short exposure image information and a long exposure image information, and the image processing module Exposure fusion is performed on the short-exposure image information and the long-exposure image information to generate a high dynamic range image information.

較佳地,根據本發明之動態影像感測器,其中,該等第一曝光像素與該等第二曝光像素交錯排列,且該等第一曝光像素的數量為該等第二曝光像素的數量之1倍、2倍以及3倍其中之一。Preferably, in the dynamic image sensor according to the present invention, the first exposure pixels and the second exposure pixels are arranged alternately, and the number of the first exposure pixels is the number of the second exposure pixels One of 1 times, 2 times and 3 times.

綜上,本發明所提供之動態影像產生方法,主要利用本發明之動態影像感測器藉由第一曝光像素曝光短曝光時間,同時第二曝光像素曝光長曝光時間,並通過色調映射以及曝光融合產生高動態範圍影像資訊。如此一來,本發明利用長短曝光陣列的設計,在同一幀的時間內就可以將不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像資訊進行曝光融合,達成增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效,大幅提升辨識演算法針對動態影像進行辨識時的準確度,降低發生事故的風險。此外,藉由影像處理模組將待測短曝光時間增加短曝光定值形成新的待測短曝光時間,或者將待測長曝光時間減少長曝光定值形成新的待測長曝光時間,以產生最佳短曝光時間以及最佳長曝光時間。藉此,本發明用空間解析度換取額外的曝光資訊,有利於在短時間內收斂至最佳曝光時間,使得高動態範圍影像資訊曝光良好。To sum up, the dynamic image generation method provided by the present invention mainly utilizes the dynamic image sensor of the present invention to expose the first exposure pixel for a short exposure time, while the second exposure pixel is exposed for a long exposure time, and through tone mapping and exposure Fusion produces high dynamic range image information. In this way, the present invention utilizes the design of long and short exposure arrays to expose and fuse image information that is exposed at different times and with different exposure times within the same frame time, thereby achieving the effects of enhancing the clarity and brightness of moving images, and greatly improving The accuracy of the identification algorithm for identification of dynamic images reduces the risk of accidents. In addition, by the image processing module, the short exposure time to be measured is increased by a short exposure fixed value to form a new short exposure time to be measured, or the long exposure time to be measured is reduced by a long exposure fixed value to form a new long exposure time to be measured. Produces the best short exposure times as well as the best long exposure times. In this way, the present invention exchanges the spatial resolution for additional exposure information, which is beneficial to converge to the optimal exposure time in a short time, so that the exposure of high dynamic range image information is good.

爲使熟悉該項技藝人士瞭解本發明之目的、特徵及功效,茲藉由下述具體實施例,並配合所附之圖式,對本發明詳加說明如下。In order to enable those skilled in the art to understand the purpose, features and effects of the present invention, the present invention will be described in detail below by means of the following specific embodiments and accompanying drawings.

現在將參照其中示出本發明概念的示例性實施例的附圖 在下文中更充分地闡述本發明概念。以下藉由參照附圖更詳細地闡述的示例性實施例,本發明概念的優點及特徵以及其達成方法將顯而易見。然而,應注意,本發明概念並非僅限於以下示例性實施例,而是可實施為各種形式。因此,提供示例性實施例僅是為了揭露本發明概念並使熟習此項技術者瞭解本發明概念的類別。在圖式中,本發明概念的示例性實施例並非僅限於本文所提供的特定實例且為清晰起見而進行誇大。The inventive concept will now be explained more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept are shown. Advantages and features of the inventive concept and methods for achieving it will be apparent below by referring to the exemplary embodiments described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the inventive concept is not limited to the following exemplary embodiments, but can be implemented in various forms. Therefore, the exemplary embodiments are provided only to disclose the inventive concept and to make one skilled in the art understand the category of the inventive concept. In the drawings, the exemplary embodiments of the inventive concepts are not limited to the specific examples provided herein and are exaggerated for clarity.

本文所用術語僅用於闡述特定實施例,而並非旨在限制本發明。除非上下文中清楚地另外指明,否則本文所用的單數形式的用語「一」及「該」旨在亦包括複數形式。本文所用的用語「及/或」包括相關所列項其中一或多者的任意及所有組合。應理解,當稱元件「連接」或「耦合」至另一元件時,所述元件可直接連接或耦合至所述另一元件或可存在中間元件。The terminology used herein is for describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the terms "a", "an" and "the" in the singular are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements may be present.

相似地,應理解,當稱一個元件(例如層、區或基板)位於另一元件「上」時,所述元件可直接位於所述另一元件上,或可存在中間元件。相比之下,用語「直接」意指不存在中間元件。更應理解,當在本文中使用用語「包括」、「包含」時,是表明所陳述的特徵、整數、步驟、操作、元件、及/或組件的存在,但不排除一或多個其他特徵、整數、步驟、操作、元件、組件、及/或其群組的存在或添加。Similarly, it will be understood that when an element such as a layer, region or substrate is referred to as being "on" another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may be present. In contrast, the term "directly" means that there are no intervening elements. It should be further understood that when the words "comprising" and "comprising" are used herein, it indicates the existence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but does not exclude one or more other features. , integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or the presence or addition of groups thereof.

此外,將藉由作為本發明概念的理想化示例性圖的剖視圖來闡述詳細說明中的示例性實施例。相應地,可根據製造技術及/或可容許的誤差來修改示例性圖的形狀。因此,本發明概念的示例性實施例並非僅限於示例性圖中所示出的特定形狀,而是可包括可根據製造製程而產生的其他形狀。圖式中所例示的區域具有一般特性,且用於說明元件的特定形狀。因此,此不應被視為僅限於本發明概念的範圍。Furthermore, exemplary embodiments in the detailed description will be explained by means of cross-sectional views that are idealized exemplary views of the inventive concept. Accordingly, the shapes of the exemplary figures may be modified according to manufacturing techniques and/or allowable errors. Accordingly, exemplary embodiments of the inventive concepts are not limited to the specific shapes shown in the exemplary figures, but may include other shapes that may be produced according to manufacturing processes. Regions illustrated in the drawings have general characteristics and are used to illustrate specific shapes of elements. Accordingly, this should not be seen as limiting the scope of the inventive concept.

亦應理解,儘管本文中可能使用用語「第一」、「第二」、「第三」等來闡述各種元件,然而該些元件不應受限於該些用語。該些用語僅用於區分各個元件。因此,某些實施例中的第一元件可在其他實施例中被稱為第二元件,而此並不背離本發明的教示內容。本文中所闡釋及說明的本發明概念的態樣的示例性實施例包括其互補對應物。本說明書通篇中,相同的參考編號或相同的指示物表示相同的元件。It should also be understood that although the terms “first”, “second”, “third” etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish various elements. Thus, a first element in some embodiments could be termed a second element in other embodiments without departing from the teachings of the present invention. Exemplary embodiments of aspects of the inventive concept illustrated and illustrated herein include their complementary counterparts. Throughout this specification, the same reference number or the same designator designates the same element.

此外,本文中參照剖視圖及/或平面圖來闡述示例性實施例,其中所述剖視圖及/或平面圖是理想化示例性說明圖。因此,預期存在由例如製造技術及/或容差所造成的相對於圖示形狀的偏離。因此,示例性實施例不應被視作僅限於本文中所示區的形狀,而是欲包括由例如製造所導致的形狀偏差。因此,圖中所示的區為示意性的,且其形狀並非旨在說明裝置的區的實際形狀、亦並非旨在限制示例性實施例的範圍。Additionally, exemplary embodiments are described herein with reference to cross-sectional and/or plan views, which are idealized exemplary illustrations. Accordingly, deviations from the illustrated shapes as a result, for example, of manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances are to be expected. Thus, example embodiments should not be construed as limited to the shapes of regions illustrated herein but are to include deviations in shapes that result, for example, from manufacturing. Thus, the regions shown in the figures are schematic and their shapes are not intended to illustrate the actual shape of a region of a device and are not intended to limit the scope of example embodiments.

請參閱圖1所示,圖1為根據本發明之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖1所示,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100包括:感測陣列11以及影像處理模組12。Please refer to FIG. 1 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1 , a dynamic image sensor 100 according to the present invention includes: a sensing array 11 and an image processing module 12 .

具體地,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100可以是互補性氧化金屬半導體 (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor,CMOS)影像感測器,並且可以是選自背照式CMOS影像感測器或前照式CMOS影像感測器其中之一者,然而本發明不限於此。Specifically, the dynamic image sensor 100 according to the present invention may be a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor, CMOS) image sensor, and may be selected from a back-illuminated CMOS image sensor or a front-illuminated CMOS image sensor. One of the type CMOS image sensors, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

具體地,如圖1所示,根據本發明之感測陣列11,其係包含複數個第一曝光像素111以及複數個第二曝光像素112,第一曝光像素111具有一短曝光時間,第二曝光像素112具有一長曝光時間。在一些實施例中,各個第一曝光像素111以及第二曝光像素112皆為COMS成像像素。更具體而言,在一些實施例中,該短曝光時間可以與該長曝光時間相差256倍,並且該短曝光時間最短為動態影像感測器100之快門的一個快門速度(shutter speed),然而本發明不限於此。Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the sensing array 11 according to the present invention includes a plurality of first exposure pixels 111 and a plurality of second exposure pixels 112, the first exposure pixels 111 have a short exposure time, and the second exposure pixels 111 have a short exposure time. The exposure pixels 112 have a long exposure time. In some embodiments, each of the first exposure pixels 111 and the second exposure pixels 112 are CMOS imaging pixels. More specifically, in some embodiments, the short exposure time may be 256 times different from the long exposure time, and the short exposure time is at least one shutter speed of the shutter of the motion image sensor 100, however The present invention is not limited thereto.

具體地,在一些實施例中,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100可以具有滾動式快門(Rolling Shutter)機制與全域式快門(Global Shutter)機制其中之一者,其中,使用滾動式快門機制時,因滾動式快門機制曝光有時間差異,造成於動態影像感測器100拍攝動態的影像時,影像上下半部分的曝光時間不同,可能造成影像之上半部分先出現,然而影像下端卻尚未出現的時間差距,從而造成影像扭曲變形。在本發明一較佳實施例中,由於本發明係主要針對動態範圍內產生動態的影像,為避免動態影像產生果凍效應(Jello Effect),因此採用全域式快門機制,亦即感測陣列11上的所有第一曝光像素111以及第二曝光像素112都會同時曝光以取得影像訊號或影像電荷,然而本發明不限於此。Specifically, in some embodiments, the dynamic image sensor 100 according to the present invention may have one of a rolling shutter (Rolling Shutter) mechanism and a global shutter (Global Shutter) mechanism, wherein the rolling shutter mechanism is used At this time, due to the time difference in the exposure of the rolling shutter mechanism, when the dynamic image sensor 100 shoots a dynamic image, the exposure time of the upper and lower half of the image is different, which may cause the upper half of the image to appear first, but the lower end of the image has not yet The time gap that appears causes the image to be distorted and deformed. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, since the present invention is mainly aimed at generating dynamic images in the dynamic range, in order to avoid the jello effect (Jello Effect) of dynamic images, a global shutter mechanism is adopted, that is, on the sensor array 11 All the first exposure pixels 111 and the second exposure pixels 112 are simultaneously exposed to obtain image signals or image charges, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

需要進一步說明的是,由於本發明涉及不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像的色調映射(tone mapping),以下先就色調映射進行說明。色調映射指的是將光照結果從高動態範圍影像資訊(High Dynamic Range, HDR)轉換為顯示裝置能夠正常顯示的低動態範圍影像資訊(Low Dynamic Range, LDR),本發明透過色調映射將原始拍攝場景中,亮度(brightness)極大與極小值之間相差106次方數量級內之高動態範圍影像資訊,經色調映射演算法處理,映射至可適用於硬體設備顯示的低動態範圍(如8位元)影像資訊,同時仍能保留原始拍攝場景中的顏色細節與明暗變化。由於色調映射的演算法為本技術領域具有通常知識者所熟悉,故在此不再贅述。It should be further explained that since the present invention relates to tone mapping of images exposed at different times and with different exposure times, the tone mapping will be described below first. Tone mapping refers to the conversion of lighting results from high dynamic range image information (High Dynamic Range, HDR) to low dynamic range image information (Low Dynamic Range, LDR) that can be displayed normally on a display device. In the scene, the high dynamic range image information whose brightness (brightness) maximum and minimum values differ within 106 orders of magnitude is processed by the tone mapping algorithm and mapped to a low dynamic range (such as 8-bit Yuan) image information, while still retaining the color details and shading changes in the original shooting scene. Since the tone mapping algorithm is familiar to those skilled in the art, it will not be repeated here.

值得一提的是,由於本發明涉及不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像曝光融合(exposure fusion),以下先就曝光融合進行說明。本文涉及的曝光融合方法是基於第一曝光像素111以及第二曝光像素112,曝光融合過程一般可包含預處理、變換、綜合和反變換四個步驟。預處理一般是指曝光融合之前的準備操作,在此不再贅述。曝光融合過程中的變換一般採用的主要方法可以包含主成分分析(PCA)方法、HIS(Intensity-Hue-Saturation)變換方法、小波變換法多解析度方法如拉普拉斯金字塔融合演算法等其中之一或其組合。曝光融合過程中的綜合指的是將第一曝光像素111以及第二曝光像素112產生之影像訊號的變換結果進行綜合處理,綜合處理可以有多種處理方法,例如:選擇法、加權平均法以及優化法等,其中,選擇法可以是從原圖像序列中選擇出相應的變換系數組成一組新的變換系數,加權平均法可以是將影像訊號對應的變換系數根據特定規則確定權值,並經過加權平均運算產生新的系數。曝光融合過程中的反變換指的是將經綜合後之影像訊號之新的變換系數進行相應的逆操作,例如從現有圖片反推幅照圖(radiance map),以產生得到最終的融合圖像。It is worth mentioning that since the present invention relates to image exposure fusion with different exposure times and different exposure times, the exposure fusion will be described below first. The exposure fusion method involved in this paper is based on the first exposure pixels 111 and the second exposure pixels 112 , and the exposure fusion process generally includes four steps of preprocessing, transformation, synthesis and inverse transformation. Preprocessing generally refers to preparation operations before exposure fusion, which will not be repeated here. The main methods of transformation in the exposure fusion process generally include Principal Component Analysis (PCA) method, HIS (Intensity-Hue-Saturation) transformation method, wavelet transformation method, multi-resolution method such as Laplacian pyramid fusion algorithm, etc. one or a combination thereof. The synthesis in the exposure fusion process refers to the comprehensive processing of the transformation results of the image signals generated by the first exposure pixel 111 and the second exposure pixel 112. There are many processing methods for the comprehensive processing, such as: selection method, weighted average method and optimization Among them, the selection method can be to select the corresponding transformation coefficients from the original image sequence to form a new set of transformation coefficients, and the weighted average method can determine the weight of the transformation coefficients corresponding to the image signal according to specific rules, and through The weighted average operation produces new coefficients. The inverse transformation in the exposure fusion process refers to the corresponding inverse operation of the new transformation coefficients of the integrated image signal, for example, the radiance map is reversed from the existing image to generate the final fused image .

具體地,如圖1所示,根據本發明之影像處理模組12,其係耦接於該感測陣列11,影像處理模組12主要係用於執行演算法,在一些實施例中,演算法係包含色調映射演算法,色調映射演算法可以選自伽馬曲線演算法以及專業色彩編碼系統曲線演算法其中之一。更具體而言,影像處理模組12可以包含有伺服器、個人電腦以及積體電路(Application Specific Integrated Circuit, ASIC)其中之一或其組合,然而本發明不限於此。Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the image processing module 12 according to the present invention is coupled to the sensing array 11. The image processing module 12 is mainly used to execute an algorithm. In some embodiments, the algorithm The legal system includes a tone mapping algorithm, and the tone mapping algorithm can be selected from one of the gamma curve algorithm and the professional color coding system curve algorithm. More specifically, the image processing module 12 may include one or a combination of a server, a personal computer, and an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), but the present invention is not limited thereto.

為供進一步瞭解本發明構造特徵、運用技術手段及所預期達成之功效,茲將本發明使用方式加以敘述,相信當可由此而對本發明有更深入且具體瞭解,請參閱圖2所示,圖2為說明執行本發明之動態影像產生方法的步驟方塊圖。根據本發明之高幀率高動態範之動態影像產生方法包含下述步驟:In order to further understand the structural characteristics of the present invention, the use of technical means and the expected effect, the use of the present invention will be described hereby. It is believed that the present invention can be understood more deeply and specifically. Please refer to Figure 2. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the steps of implementing the dynamic image generation method of the present invention. The method for generating dynamic images with high frame rate and high dynamic range according to the present invention comprises the following steps:

同時曝光步驟S11,第一曝光像素111曝光短曝光時間產生短曝影像訊號,同時第二曝光像素112曝光長曝光時間產生長曝影像訊號,接著執行色調映射步驟S12。In the simultaneous exposure step S11 , the first exposure pixel 111 is exposed for a short exposure time to generate a short exposure image signal, while the second exposure pixel 112 is exposed for a long exposure time to generate a long exposure image signal, and then the tone mapping step S12 is performed.

色調映射步驟S12,影像處理模組12將短曝影像訊號以及長曝影像訊號執行色調映射演算法,產生短曝影像資訊以及長曝影像資訊,接著執行曝光融合步驟S13。In the tone mapping step S12, the image processing module 12 executes the tone mapping algorithm on the short-exposure image signal and the long-exposure image signal to generate short-exposure image information and long-exposure image information, and then executes the exposure fusion step S13.

曝光融合步驟S13,影像處理模組12將短曝影像資訊以及長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合,產生高動態範圍影像資訊,接著執行輸出步驟S14。In the exposure fusion step S13 , the image processing module 12 performs exposure fusion on the short-exposure image information and the long-exposure image information to generate high dynamic range image information, and then executes the output step S14 .

輸出步驟S14,影像處理模組12輸出高動態範圍影像資訊。In the outputting step S14, the image processing module 12 outputs the high dynamic range image information.

為供進一步瞭解本發明構造特徵、運用技術手段及所預期達成之功效,茲將本發明第一實施例實際執行過程加以敘述,相   信當可由此而對本發明有更深入且具體瞭解,如下所述:In order to further understand the structural features, technical means and expected effects of the present invention, the actual implementation process of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described, and it is believed that the present invention can be understood more deeply and specifically as follows. Said:

請參閱圖3,並且搭配圖1及圖2所示,圖3為說明根據本發明之動態影像產生方法實際執行過程之步驟流程圖。根據本發明之動態影像感測器100實際執行過程說明如下:首先,執行同時曝光步驟S11,第一曝光像素111曝光短曝光時間21產生短曝影像訊號23,同時第二曝光像素112曝光長曝光時間22產生長曝影像訊號24;接著,執行色調映射步驟S12,影像處理模組12將短曝影像訊號23以及長曝影像訊號24執行色調映射演算法,產生短曝影像資訊25以及長曝影像資訊26;之後,執行曝光融合步驟S13,影像處理模組12將短曝影像資訊25以及長曝影像資訊26進行曝光融合,產生高動態範圍影像資訊27;最後,執行輸出步驟S14,影像處理模組12輸出高動態範圍影像資訊27。Please refer to FIG. 3 , together with FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating the actual execution process of the dynamic image generation method according to the present invention. The actual execution process of the dynamic image sensor 100 according to the present invention is described as follows: First, the simultaneous exposure step S11 is performed, the first exposure pixel 111 is exposed for a short exposure time 21 to generate a short exposure image signal 23, and at the same time the second exposure pixel 112 is exposed for a long exposure Time 22 to generate a long-exposure image signal 24; then, execute the tone mapping step S12, the image processing module 12 executes the tone-mapping algorithm on the short-exposure image signal 23 and the long-exposure image signal 24 to generate short-exposure image information 25 and long-exposure image information 26; afterward, execute the exposure fusion step S13, the image processing module 12 performs exposure fusion on the short exposure image information 25 and the long exposure image information 26, and generate high dynamic range image information 27; finally, execute the output step S14, the image processing module Group 12 outputs high dynamic range image information 27 .

藉此,由上述說明可知,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法藉由第一曝光像素111曝光短曝光時間21,同時第二曝光像素112曝光長曝光時間22,並通過色調映射以及曝光融合產生高動態範圍影像資訊27。如此一來,本發明利用長短曝光陣列的設計,在一幀的時間內就可以將影像資訊進行曝光融合,達成增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效。Therefore, it can be seen from the above description that the dynamic image generation method according to the present invention uses the first exposure pixel 111 to expose for a short exposure time 21, while the second exposure pixel 112 exposes for a long exposure time 22, and generates high Dynamic Range Image Information 27 . In this way, the present invention utilizes the design of the long and short exposure arrays to perform exposure and fusion of image information within one frame, thereby achieving effects such as enhancing the definition and brightness of moving images.

以下,參照圖式,說明本發明的動態影像感測器100的第一實施之實施形態,以使本發明所屬技術領域中具有通常知識者更清楚的理解可能的變化。以與上述相同的元件符號指示的元件實質上相同於上述參照圖1所敘述者。與動態影像感測器100相同的元件、特徵、和優點將不再贅述。Hereinafter, the first embodiment of the dynamic image sensor 100 of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, so that those skilled in the art of the present invention can understand possible changes more clearly. Components denoted by the same reference numerals as above are substantially the same as those described above with reference to FIG. 1 . The same components, features, and advantages as those of the dynamic image sensor 100 will not be repeated.

請參閱圖4所示,圖4為根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖4所示,根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像感測器100A包括:感測陣列11A以及影像處理模組12A。Please refer to FIG. 4 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4 , the dynamic image sensor 100A according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes: a sensing array 11A and an image processing module 12A.

具體地,如圖4所示,在本實施例中,根據本發明之感測陣列11A包含有複數個第一曝光像素111A以及複數個第二曝光像素112A,第一曝光像素111A與第二曝光像素112A交錯排列,且第一曝光像素111A與第二曝光像素112A的數量相等,其中,第一曝光像素111A具有短曝光時間,第二曝光像素112A具有長曝光時間,長曝光時間可以是短曝光時間的2倍、4倍以及8倍其中之一,然而本發明不限於此。可以理解的是,透過第一曝光像素111A與第二曝光像素112A交錯排列可以確保本發明之動態影像感測器100A產生的動態影像在圖框上的每一區塊都有相同的長曝光時間以及短曝光時間。此外,本發明之感測陣列11A中第一曝光像素111A與第二曝光像素112A的數量,以及長曝光時間與短曝光時間之間的關係,可以根據動態影像感測器100A所使用的環境進行改動,舉例而言,當動態影像感測器100A處於較亮的環境中進行使用時,具有短曝光時間的第一曝光像素111A之數量可以少於具有長曝光時間的第二曝光像素112A,並且長曝光時間相較於短曝光時間可以具有較高的倍數,以確保動態影像感測器100A產生之動態影像具有較佳的清晰度以及亮度,然而本發明不限於此。Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4 , in this embodiment, the sensing array 11A according to the present invention includes a plurality of first exposure pixels 111A and a plurality of second exposure pixels 112A, the first exposure pixels 111A and the second exposure pixels The pixels 112A are arranged in a staggered manner, and the number of the first exposure pixels 111A and the second exposure pixels 112A are equal, wherein, the first exposure pixels 111A have a short exposure time, and the second exposure pixels 112A have a long exposure time, and the long exposure time can be short exposure One of 2 times, 4 times and 8 times of the time, but the present invention is not limited thereto. It can be understood that the staggered arrangement of the first exposure pixels 111A and the second exposure pixels 112A can ensure that each block of the motion image generated by the motion image sensor 100A of the present invention has the same long exposure time and short exposure times. In addition, the number of the first exposure pixels 111A and the second exposure pixels 112A in the sensing array 11A of the present invention, as well as the relationship between the long exposure time and the short exposure time can be determined according to the environment in which the motion image sensor 100A is used. Modification, for example, when the dynamic image sensor 100A is used in a brighter environment, the number of the first exposure pixels 111A with a short exposure time may be less than the second exposure pixels 112A with a long exposure time, and The long exposure time may have a higher multiple than the short exposure time to ensure that the dynamic image generated by the dynamic image sensor 100A has better clarity and brightness, but the invention is not limited thereto.

需要進一步說明的是,在本實施例中,影像處理模組12A之色調映射演算法係選自伽馬曲線(Gamma curve)演算法以及專業色彩編碼系統曲線(Academy Color Encoding System curve)S演算法其中之一,然而本發明不限於此。It should be further explained that, in this embodiment, the tone mapping algorithm of the image processing module 12A is selected from the Gamma curve (Gamma curve) algorithm and the professional color coding system curve (Academy Color Encoding System curve) S algorithm One of them, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

值得一提的是,在本實施例中,影像處理模組12A可以儲存有一夾擠上限值以及一夾擠下限值,其中,夾擠上限值可以代表判斷過曝之閾值,夾擠下限值可以代表判斷過暗之閾值,影像訊號以及夾擠下限可以例如是DN(Digital Number)值或由其換算而來之值。舉例而言,當影像處理模組12A將曝光時間增加到最長,但待測影像訊號仍低於夾擠下限值時,則影像處理模組12A可以判定當前處於過暗的環境中,此時,影像處理模組12A可以透過待測影像訊號進行疊圖以產生更明亮及更多細節之影像訊號,然而本發明不限於此。It is worth mentioning that, in this embodiment, the image processing module 12A can store a pinch upper limit and a pinch lower limit, wherein the pinch upper limit can represent the threshold for judging overexposure, and pinch The lower limit value may represent a threshold for judging too dark, and the lower limit of video signal and pinch may be, for example, a DN (Digital Number) value or a value converted therefrom. For example, when the image processing module 12A increases the exposure time to the maximum, but the image signal to be tested is still lower than the lower limit of pinching, the image processing module 12A can determine that the current environment is too dark. , the image processing module 12A can perform image overlay through the image signal to be tested to generate a brighter and more detailed image signal, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

值得再提的是,在本實施例中,影像處理模組12A可以儲存有長曝光定值以及短曝光定值,使用者亦可以透過影像處理模組12A根據當前環境的明亮程度調整長曝光定值以及短曝光定值。舉例而言,當所處環境較亮時,短曝光定值可以具有較大的值且長曝光定值可以具有較小的值,以更快速產生最佳曝光時間,有效地節省動態影像感測器100A產生最佳曝光時間中所執行影像擷取的操作次數以及時間,並且可有效地節省電子裝置的電能。It is worth mentioning that, in this embodiment, the image processing module 12A can store a long exposure setting value and a short exposure setting value, and the user can also adjust the long exposure setting value according to the brightness of the current environment through the image processing module 12A. value and short exposure setting. For example, when the environment is brighter, the short exposure setting value can have a larger value and the long exposure setting value can have a smaller value, so as to generate the optimal exposure time faster and effectively save the dynamic image sensor The number of operations and the time of image capture performed by the device 100A to generate the optimal exposure time can effectively save the power of the electronic device.

請參閱圖5所示,圖5為說明執行本發明第一實施例之動態影像產生方法的步驟方塊圖。本發明係以第一實施例之動態影像感測器100A為基礎,進一步提供一種執行第一實施例之動態影像感測器100的動態影像產生方法,其係包含下列步驟:Please refer to FIG. 5 . FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating the steps of the method for generating a dynamic image according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is based on the dynamic image sensor 100A of the first embodiment, and further provides a dynamic image generation method for implementing the dynamic image sensor 100 of the first embodiment, which includes the following steps:

測試步驟S21,第一曝光像素111A曝光待測短曝光時間,同時第二曝光像素112A曝光待測長曝光時間,以產生待測短曝影像訊號以及待測長曝影像訊號,接著執行判定步驟S22。In the test step S21, the first exposure pixel 111A is exposed for a short exposure time to be tested, and at the same time, the second exposure pixel 112A is exposed for a long exposure time to be measured, so as to generate a short exposure image signal to be tested and a long exposure image signal to be tested, and then execute the determination step S22 .

判定步驟S22,影像處理模組12A確認待測短曝影像訊號是否高於一夾擠下限,並確認待測長曝影像訊號是否低於一夾擠上限。In the determination step S22 , the image processing module 12A confirms whether the short-exposure image signal to be tested is higher than a lower limit of pinching, and confirms whether the signal of the long-exposure image to be tested is lower than an upper limit of pinching.

調整步驟S23,影像處理模組12A將該待測短曝光時間增加一短曝光定值,或者將該待測長曝光時間減少一長曝光定值,以形成新的待測短曝光時間以及新的待測長曝光時間。In the adjustment step S23, the image processing module 12A increases the short exposure time to be measured by a short exposure constant value, or decreases the long exposure time to be measured by a long exposure constant value to form a new short exposure time to be measured and a new Long exposure time to be measured.

最佳曝光時間產生步驟S24,影像處理模組12A根據該待測短曝光時間以及該待測長曝光時間產生最佳短曝光時間以及最佳長曝光時間。In the optimal exposure time generating step S24 , the image processing module 12A generates an optimal short exposure time and an optimal long exposure time according to the short exposure time to be measured and the long exposure time to be measured.

同時曝光步驟S25,第一曝光像素111A曝光最佳短曝光時間產生短曝影像訊號,同時第二曝光像素112A曝光最佳長曝光時間產生長曝影像訊號,接著執行色調映射步驟S26。Simultaneous exposure step S25 , the first exposure pixel 111A is exposed for an optimal short exposure time to generate a short exposure image signal, while the second exposure pixel 112A is exposed for an optimal long exposure time to generate a long exposure image signal, and then the tone mapping step S26 is performed.

色調映射步驟S26,影像處理模組12A將短曝影像訊號以及長曝影像訊號執行色調映射演算法,產生短曝影像資訊以及長曝影像資訊,接著執行曝光融合步驟S27。In the tone mapping step S26, the image processing module 12A executes the tone mapping algorithm on the short-exposure image signal and the long-exposure image signal to generate short-exposure image information and long-exposure image information, and then executes the exposure fusion step S27.

曝光融合步驟S27,影像處理模組12A將短曝影像資訊以及長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合,產生高動態範圍影像資訊,接著執行輸出步驟S28。In the exposure fusion step S27 , the image processing module 12A performs exposure fusion on the short-exposure image information and the long-exposure image information to generate high dynamic range image information, and then executes the output step S28 .

輸出步驟S28,影像處理模組12A輸出該高動態範圍影像資訊。In the output step S28, the image processing module 12A outputs the high dynamic range image information.

為供進一步瞭解本發明構造特徵、運用技術手段及所預期達成之功效,茲將本發明第一實施例實際執行過程加以敘述,相信當可由此而對本發明有更深入且具體瞭解,如下所述:In order to further understand the structural features, technical means and expected effects of the present invention, the actual implementation process of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. It is believed that the present invention can be understood more deeply and specifically as follows. :

請參閱圖6,並且搭配圖4及圖5所示,圖6為說明根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像產生方法實際執行過程之步驟流程圖。根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像感測器100A實際執行過程說明如下:首先,執行測試步驟S21,第一曝光像素111A曝光待測短曝光時間31A,同時第二曝光像素112A曝光待測長曝光時間32A,以產生待測短曝影像訊號33A以及待測長曝影像訊號34A;接著,執行判定步驟S22,影像處理模組12A確認待測短曝影像訊號33A是否高於夾擠下限35A,並確認待測長曝影像訊號34A是否低於夾擠上限36A;其中,若判定步驟S22判定待測短曝影像訊號33A低於該夾擠下限35A,或者待測長曝影像訊號34A高於夾擠上限36A,則執行調整步驟S23,影像處理模組12A將待測短曝光時間31A增加短曝光定值37A,以形成新的待測短曝光時間31A,或者將待測長曝光時間32A減少長曝光定值38A,以形成新的待測長曝光時間32A,並重複執行測試步驟S21;若判定步驟S22判定待測短曝影像訊號33A高於該夾擠下限35A,或者待測長曝影像訊號34A低於夾擠上限36A,則執行最佳曝光時間產生步驟S24,影像處理模組12A根據待測短曝光時間31A以及待測長曝光時間32A產生最佳短曝光時間39A以及最佳長曝光時間40A;之後,執行同時曝光步驟S3725,第一曝光像素111曝光最佳短曝光時間39A產生短曝影像訊號23A,同時第二曝光像素112曝光最佳長曝光時間40A產生長曝影像訊號24A;接著,執行色調映射步驟S3826,影像處理模組12A將短曝影像訊號23A以及長曝影像訊號24A執行色調映射演算法,產生短曝影像資訊25A以及長曝影像資訊26A;之後,執行曝光融合步驟S3927,影像處理模組12A將短曝影像資訊25A以及長曝影像資訊26A進行曝光融合,產生高動態範圍影像資訊27A;最後,執行輸出步驟S4028,影像處理模組12A輸出高動態範圍影像資訊27A。Please refer to FIG. 6 , together with FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 , FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the actual execution process of the dynamic image generation method according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The actual execution process of the dynamic image sensor 100A according to the first embodiment of the present invention is described as follows: First, the test step S21 is executed, the first exposure pixel 111A is exposed to the short exposure time 31A to be tested, and the second exposure pixel 112A is exposed to the long exposure time to be measured The exposure time 32A is used to generate the short-exposure image signal 33A to be tested and the long-exposure image signal 34A to be tested; then, the determination step S22 is performed, and the image processing module 12A confirms whether the short-exposure image signal 33A to be tested is higher than the pinching lower limit 35A, And confirm whether the long-exposure image signal 34A to be measured is lower than the pinch upper limit 36A; wherein, if the determination step S22 determines that the short-exposure image signal 33A to be tested is lower than the pinch lower limit 35A, or the long-exposure image signal 34A to be measured is higher than the pinch lower limit If the upper limit 36A is squeezed, the adjustment step S23 is performed, and the image processing module 12A increases the short exposure time 31A to be measured by the short exposure fixed value 37A to form a new short exposure time to be measured 31A, or decreases the long exposure time to be measured 32A by a long Exposure fixed value 38A, to form a new long exposure time 32A to be measured, and repeat the test step S21; 34A is lower than the pinching upper limit 36A, then execute the optimal exposure time generating step S24, the image processing module 12A generates the optimal short exposure time 39A and the optimal long exposure time according to the short exposure time 31A to be measured and the long exposure time 32A to be measured 40A; after that, the simultaneous exposure step S3725 is executed, the first exposure pixel 111 is exposed to the optimal short exposure time 39A to generate a short exposure image signal 23A, and the second exposure pixel 112 is exposed to the optimal long exposure time 40A to generate a long exposure image signal 24A; then , execute the tone mapping step S3826, the image processing module 12A executes the tone mapping algorithm on the short-exposure image signal 23A and the long-exposure image signal 24A to generate the short-exposure image information 25A and the long-exposure image information 26A; after that, execute the exposure fusion step S3927 , the image processing module 12A performs exposure fusion of the short-exposure image information 25A and the long-exposure image information 26A to generate high dynamic range image information 27A; finally, the output step S4028 is executed, and the image processing module 12A outputs the high dynamic range image information 27A.

需要進一步說明的是,請參閱圖7所示,圖7為說明根據本發明第一實施例之色調映射演算法的示意圖。如圖7所示,並搭配圖5及圖6,圖7為經過測試步驟S21至最佳曝光時間產生步驟S24調整後產生的短曝影像訊號23A以及長曝影像訊號24A於單一像素的示意圖,執行色調映射之前,本實施例將短曝影像訊號23以及長曝影像訊號24A的像素值51A進行部分位數重疊計算(圖7為示例性表示為兩位),並予以長曝影像訊號24A較高的權重(圖7為示例性表示為4倍權重,在二進制表示中亦即進行左移兩位之操作)進行疊加,使得長曝影像訊號24A的像素值51A愈高、短曝影像訊號23的像素值51A愈低,以實現高動態範圍影像資訊的效果。如圖7所示,之後再將疊加後的短曝影像訊號23以及長曝影像訊號24A進行色調映射演算法,例如:Gamma curve、ACES curve等全局色調映射函數(global tone mapping curve),或者例如:Reinhard色調映射等考慮局部像素特徵的方法,將高動態範圍影像資訊映射回低動態範圍影像資訊。在本實施例中,色調映射演算法僅為簡單的線性轉換,然而本發明不限於此。For further explanation, please refer to FIG. 7 , which is a schematic diagram illustrating the tone mapping algorithm according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 7 , together with FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 , FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a single pixel of the short-exposure image signal 23A and the long-exposure image signal 24A generated after adjustment from the testing step S21 to the optimal exposure time generating step S24. Before executing the tone mapping, in this embodiment, the pixel value 51A of the short-exposure image signal 23 and the long-exposure image signal 24A is partially overlapped (shown as two digits in FIG. 7 ), and compared with the long-exposure image signal 24A. Higher weights (Figure 7 is an exemplary representation of 4 times the weight, that is, the operation of shifting two bits to the left in binary representation) are superimposed, so that the higher the pixel value 51A of the long-exposure image signal 24A, the higher the pixel value 51A of the short-exposure image signal 23A. The lower the pixel value 51A is, the effect of high dynamic range image information can be achieved. As shown in FIG. 7 , the superimposed short-exposure image signal 23 and long-exposure image signal 24A are then subjected to tone mapping algorithms, such as global tone mapping functions such as Gamma curve and ACES curve, or for example : Reinhard tone mapping and other methods that consider local pixel characteristics, and map high dynamic range image information back to low dynamic range image information. In this embodiment, the tone mapping algorithm is simply linear transformation, but the invention is not limited thereto.

值得一提的是,根據本發明之動態影像感測器可以儲存有短曝光時間上限值(圖未示)以及長曝光時間下限值(圖未示),其中,短曝光時間上限值係為待測短曝光時間31A的最大值,長曝光時間下限值係為待測長曝光時間32A的最小值,可以理解的是,受限於不同的動態影像感測器之硬體,短曝光時間上限值代表的是第一曝光像素111A在硬體上短曝光時間31A的上限值,長曝光時間下限值代表的是第二曝光像素112A在硬體上長曝光時間32A的下限值。如此一來,根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像產生方法,透過最佳短曝光時間39A以及最佳長曝光時間40A,實現讓每一幀的短曝影像訊號23A以及長曝影像訊號24A分布機率盡量接近,且透過短曝光時間上限值以及長曝光時間下限值,保證短曝影像訊號23A以及長曝影像訊號24A的分布中心(例如:平均值或中位數)之間的距離不要過近,可以理解的是,當最佳短曝光時間39A以及最佳長曝光時間40A的值越接近時,將減少本發明所產生之技術功效,且不利於後續的曝光融合演算。It is worth mentioning that the dynamic image sensor according to the present invention can store a short exposure time upper limit value (not shown in the figure) and a long exposure time lower limit value (not shown in the figure), wherein the short exposure time upper limit value is the maximum value of the short exposure time 31A to be measured, and the lower limit of the long exposure time is the minimum value of the long exposure time 32A to be measured. The upper limit of the exposure time represents the upper limit of the short exposure time 31A of the first exposure pixel 111A on the hardware, and the lower limit of the long exposure time represents the lower limit of the second exposure pixel 112A on the hardware of the long exposure time 32A. limit. In this way, according to the dynamic image generation method of the first embodiment of the present invention, through the optimal short exposure time 39A and the optimal long exposure time 40A, the distribution of the short exposure image signal 23A and the long exposure image signal 24A of each frame is realized. The probability is as close as possible, and through the upper limit value of the short exposure time and the lower limit value of the long exposure time, it is ensured that the distance between the distribution center (for example: average or median) of the short exposure image signal 23A and the long exposure image signal 24A is not Too close, it can be understood that when the values of the optimal short exposure time 39A and the optimal long exposure time 40A are closer, the technical effect of the present invention will be reduced, and it is not conducive to the subsequent exposure fusion calculation.

藉此,由上述說明可知,根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像產生方法及其動態影像感測器100A,可以藉由影像處理模組12A將待測短曝光時間31A增加短曝光定值37A直至短曝光時間上限值,或者將待測長曝光時間32A減少長曝光定值38A直至長曝光時間下限值,以產生最佳短曝光時間39A以及最佳長曝光時間40A。藉此,本發明用空間解析度換取額外的曝光資訊,有利於在短時間內收斂至最佳曝光時間,使得高動態範圍影像資訊27A曝光良好。此外,透過夾擠之運算方式,使得本發明之自動曝光時間方法可以實現一種動態運算的方式產生最佳曝光時間,以適應各種拍攝環境,同時降低產生最佳曝光時間的運算時間,大幅提升本發明之效率以及適用性。Therefore, it can be seen from the above description that according to the dynamic image generation method and its dynamic image sensor 100A according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the short exposure time 31A to be measured can be increased by the short exposure constant value 37A by the image processing module 12A Up to the upper limit of the short exposure time, or reduce the long exposure time 32A to be measured from the long exposure fixed value 38A to the lower limit of the long exposure time to generate the best short exposure time 39A and the best long exposure time 40A. In this way, the present invention exchanges the spatial resolution for additional exposure information, which is beneficial to converge to the optimal exposure time in a short time, so that the high dynamic range image information 27A is exposed well. In addition, through the computing method of pinching, the automatic exposure time method of the present invention can realize a dynamic calculation method to generate the optimal exposure time to adapt to various shooting environments, and at the same time reduce the computing time for generating the optimal exposure time, greatly improving the cost. Efficiency and applicability of the invention.

以下提供動態影像感測器100的其他示例,以使本發明所屬技術領域中具有通常知識者更清楚的理解可能的變化。以與上述實施例相同的元件符號指示的元件實質上相同於上述參照圖1至圖7所敘述者。與動態影像感測器100相同的元件、特徵、和優點將不再贅述。Other examples of the dynamic image sensor 100 are provided below, so that those skilled in the art of the present invention can understand possible variations more clearly. Components indicated by the same reference numerals as in the above embodiment are substantially the same as those described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 . The same components, features, and advantages as those of the dynamic image sensor 100 will not be repeated.

請參閱圖8所示,圖8為根據本發明第二實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖8所示,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100B包括:感測陣列11B、影像處理模組12B以及亮度感測模組13B。Please refer to FIG. 8 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 8 , the dynamic image sensor 100B according to the present invention includes: a sensing array 11B, an image processing module 12B, and a brightness sensing module 13B.

具體地,根據本發明第二實施例之動態影像感測器100B,其係進一步包含有亮度感測模組13B,根據本發明第二實施例之亮度感測模組13B,其係耦接於影像處理模組12B,亮度感測模組13B係用於感測動態影像感測器100B所處環境的亮度,使得影像處理模組12B可以根據亮度感測模組13B所感測之亮度調整該夾擠下限以及該夾擠上限,當亮度感測模組13B感測之亮度低時,則對應地降低該夾擠下限,當該亮度感測模組感測之亮度高時,則對應地升高該夾擠上限,然而本發明不限於此。Specifically, the dynamic image sensor 100B according to the second embodiment of the present invention further includes a brightness sensing module 13B, and the brightness sensing module 13B according to the second embodiment of the present invention is coupled to The image processing module 12B and the brightness sensing module 13B are used to sense the brightness of the environment where the dynamic image sensor 100B is located, so that the image processing module 12B can adjust the folder according to the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module 13B The lower limit of squeeze and the upper limit of squeeze, when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module 13B is low, the lower limit of squeeze is correspondingly reduced, and when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is high, it is correspondingly increased The pinching upper limit, however the invention is not limited thereto.

請參閱圖9及圖10所示,圖9為說明執行本發明第二實施例之動態影像產生方法的步驟方塊圖;圖10為說明根據本發明第二實施例之疊加步驟實際執行過程之流程圖。根據本發明係以第二實施例之動態影像感測器100B為基礎,進一步提供一種執行第二實施例之動態影像感測器100B的動態影像產生方法,其係包含下列步驟:Please refer to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating the steps of the method for generating a dynamic image according to the second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating the actual execution process of the superimposing steps according to the second embodiment of the present invention picture. According to the present invention, based on the dynamic image sensor 100B of the second embodiment, a method for generating a dynamic image for executing the dynamic image sensor 100B of the second embodiment is further provided, which includes the following steps:

上下限調整步驟S31,影像處理模組12B係根據亮度感測模組13B所感測之亮度調整夾擠下限35B以及夾擠上限36B,當亮度感測模組感測之亮度低於低亮度值(圖未示),則對應地降低夾擠下限35B,當該亮度感測模組感測之亮度高於高亮度值(圖未示),則對應地升高夾擠上限36B,接著執行測試步驟S32。In the upper and lower limit adjustment step S31, the image processing module 12B adjusts the pinching lower limit 35B and the pinching upper limit 36B according to the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module 13B, when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is lower than the low brightness value ( Not shown in the figure), then correspondingly lower the pinching lower limit 35B, when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is higher than the high brightness value (not shown in the figure), then correspondingly increase the pinching upper limit 36B, and then execute the test steps S32.

測試步驟S32,第一曝光像素111B曝光待測短曝光時間31B,同時第二曝光像素112A曝光待測長曝光時間32B,以產生待測短曝影像訊號33B以及待測長曝影像訊號34B,接著執行判定步驟S33。In the test step S32, the first exposure pixel 111B exposes the short exposure time 31B to be tested, and the second exposure pixel 112A exposes the long exposure time 32B to generate the short exposure image signal 33B to be tested and the long exposure image signal 34B to be tested, and then Execute the decision step S33.

判定步驟S33,影像處理模組12B確認待測短曝影像訊號33B是否高於夾擠下限35B,並確認待測長曝影像訊號32B是否低於夾擠上限36B。In the determination step S33 , the image processing module 12B confirms whether the short-exposure image signal 33B to be tested is higher than the pinch lower limit 35B, and whether the long-exposure image signal 32B to be tested is lower than the pinch upper limit 36B.

調整步驟S34,影像處理模組12B將該待測短曝光時間31B增加短曝光定值37B,或者將該待測長曝光時間32B減少長曝光定值38B,以形成新的待測短曝光時間31B以及新的待測長曝光時間32B。In the adjustment step S34, the image processing module 12B increases the short exposure time 31B to be measured by a short exposure fixed value 37B, or decreases the long exposure time 32B to be measured by a long exposure fixed value 38B to form a new short exposure time to be measured 31B And the new long exposure time 32B to be tested.

最佳曝光時間產生步驟S35,影像處理模組12B根據該待測短曝光時間31B以及該待測長曝光時間32B產生最佳短曝光時間39B以及最佳長曝光時間40B。In the optimal exposure time generating step S35 , the image processing module 12B generates an optimal short exposure time 39B and an optimal long exposure time 40B according to the short exposure time to be measured 31B and the long exposure time to be measured 32B.

疊加步驟S36,影像處理模組12B將已產生的該待測短曝影像訊號33B或已產生的該待測短曝影像訊號33B與該待測長曝影像訊號32B進行疊加,以產生短曝影像訊號23B,並同時執行同時曝光步驟S37。In the superposition step S36, the image processing module 12B superimposes the generated short-exposure image signal 33B or the generated short-exposure image signal 33B and the long-exposure image signal 32B to generate a short-exposure image signal 23B, and simultaneously perform the simultaneous exposure step S37.

同時曝光步驟S37,第二曝光像素112B曝光最佳長曝光時間產生長曝影像訊號,接著執行色調映射步驟S38。At the same time in the exposure step S37 , the second exposure pixel 112B is exposed for an optimal long exposure time to generate a long exposure image signal, and then the tone mapping step S38 is executed.

色調映射步驟S38,當執行該同時曝光步驟S37後,影像處理模組12B將短曝影像訊號23B以及長曝影像訊號24B執行色調映射演算法,產生短曝影像資訊以及長曝影像資訊;當執行該最佳曝光時間產生步驟S35後,第一曝光像素111A曝光最佳短曝光時間產生短曝影像訊號23B,同時第二曝光像素112A曝光最佳長曝光時間產生長曝影像訊號,接著執行曝光融合步驟S39。Tone mapping step S38, after executing the simultaneous exposure step S37, the image processing module 12B executes the tone mapping algorithm on the short-exposure image signal 23B and the long-exposure image signal 24B to generate short-exposure image information and long-exposure image information; After the optimal exposure time generation step S35, the first exposure pixel 111A is exposed for the optimal short exposure time to generate a short exposure image signal 23B, and the second exposure pixel 112A is exposed for the optimal long exposure time to generate a long exposure image signal, and then exposure fusion is performed. Step S39.

曝光融合步驟S39,影像處理模組12B將短曝影像資訊以及長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合,產生高動態範圍影像資訊,接著執行輸出步驟S14'。In the exposure fusion step S39 , the image processing module 12B performs exposure fusion on the short-exposure image information and the long-exposure image information to generate high dynamic range image information, and then executes the output step S14 ′.

輸出步驟S40,影像處理模組12B輸出該高動態範圍影像資訊。In the output step S40, the image processing module 12B outputs the high dynamic range image information.

需要進一步說明的是,根據本發明之低亮度值代表的是處於低照度下的環境中,容易造成影像曝光不足,低亮度值可以是1勒克斯(lux)。此外,根據本發明之高亮度值代表的是處於高亮度或高照度的環境中,容易造成影像過度曝光,高亮度值可以是1000勒克斯,然而本發明不限於此。It should be further explained that the low brightness value according to the present invention represents an environment under low illumination, which may easily cause underexposure of the image, and the low brightness value may be 1 lux. In addition, the high luminance value according to the present invention represents being in a high luminance or high illuminance environment, which may easily cause image overexposure. The high luminance value may be 1000 lux, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

具體地,請參閱圖10所示,根據本發明第二實施例之動態影像產生方法,相較於第一實施例,其係進一步包含有疊加步驟S36,若該待測短曝光時間31B為該短曝光時間上限值,且判定步驟S33中該待測短曝影像訊號33B仍低於該夾擠下限35B時,根據本發明第二實施例則執行疊加步驟S36,以透過影像處理模組12B將已產生的待測短曝影像訊號33B或將已產生的待測短曝影像訊號31B與待測長曝影像訊號32B進行疊加產生短曝影像訊號23B,實現增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效。此外,請參閱下方公式1,當影像訊號中的光電子引起的散粒噪聲(shot noise)佔噪聲中主要之成分時,表示造成散粒噪聲的電子數n photon與影像訊號的電子數N signal的關係如公式(1)所示,其中,

Figure 02_image001
表示影像訊號的電子數,
Figure 02_image003
表示散粒噪聲的電子數,<
Figure 02_image005
>表示對對角括號中的
Figure 02_image005
於各個時間的值取平均值。請參閱下方公式(2)所示,由於散粒噪聲(shot noise)符合泊松分布(Poisson distribution),由於泊松分布在大量粒子數時趨向於常態分布,在大量粒子存在時訊號中的散粒雜訊會呈現常態分布,散粒雜訊的標準差此時等於平均粒子數的平方根,亦即變異數(variance)等於其平均值,使得公式2之等號成立。請參閱下方公式(3)所示,根據信噪比(Signal-to-noise ratio, SNR)之公式並代入公式(1)以及公式(2),使得公式(3)之等式成立。可以理解的是,根據公式(1)-(3)所示,訊噪比正比於影像訊號的電子數,因此,本發明透過將已產生的待測短曝影像訊號33B或已產生的待測短曝影像訊號33B與待測長曝影像訊號34B進行疊加產生短曝影像訊號23B的方式,可以實現降低信噪比之功效,然而本發明不限於此。
Figure 02_image007
….(1)
Figure 02_image009
….(2)
Figure 02_image011
….(3) Specifically, please refer to FIG. 10. Compared with the first embodiment, the dynamic image generation method according to the second embodiment of the present invention further includes a superposition step S36. If the short exposure time 31B to be measured is the When the upper limit of the short exposure time is determined, and the short exposure image signal 33B to be tested is still lower than the pinch lower limit 35B in step S33, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the superposition step S36 is executed to pass through the image processing module 12B Superimpose the generated short-exposure image signal 33B or the generated short-exposure image signal 31B and the long-exposure image signal 32B to generate a short-exposure image signal 23B, so as to enhance the clarity and brightness of the moving image, etc. effect. In addition, please refer to the following formula 1. When the shot noise caused by photoelectrons in the image signal accounts for the main component of the noise, it represents the number n photon of electrons causing shot noise and the number N signal of electrons in the image signal. The relationship is shown in formula (1), where,
Figure 02_image001
Represents the number of electrons in the video signal,
Figure 02_image003
represents the number of electrons of shot noise, <
Figure 02_image005
> Indicates the pair of diagonal brackets
Figure 02_image005
The values at each time were averaged. Please refer to the formula (2) below, since the shot noise conforms to the Poisson distribution (Poisson distribution), since the Poisson distribution tends to the normal distribution when there are a large number of particles, the scattered noise in the signal exists when there are a large number of particles The particle noise will show a normal distribution, and the standard deviation of the shot noise is equal to the square root of the average number of particles at this time, that is, the variance is equal to its average value, so that the equality of the formula 2 is established. Please refer to formula (3) below, according to the formula of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and substituting into formula (1) and formula (2), the equation of formula (3) is established. It can be understood that, according to formulas (1)-(3), the signal-to-noise ratio is proportional to the number of electrons in the image signal. The method of superimposing the short-exposure image signal 33B and the long-exposure image signal 34B to generate the short-exposure image signal 23B can realize the effect of reducing the signal-to-noise ratio, but the present invention is not limited thereto.
Figure 02_image007
….(1)
Figure 02_image009
….(2)
Figure 02_image011
 ….(3)

請參閱圖11及圖12所示,圖11為說明根據本發明第二實施例之色調映射步驟的方塊圖;圖12為說明根據本發明第二實施例之色調映射步驟實際執行過程之流程圖。根據本發明第二實施例之動態影像感測器100實際執行色調映射步驟過程說明如下:首先,執行臨界值產生步驟S381,影像處理模組12B係將短曝影像訊號23B之該等像素值取平均值作為短曝亮度臨界值41B,並將長曝影像訊號24B之該等像素值取平均值作為長曝亮度臨界值42B,以作為高動態範圍合成步驟S382的基準S381;之後,執行高動態範圍合成步驟S382,影像處理模組12B根據短曝亮度臨界值41B,將短曝影像訊號23B中高於短曝亮度臨界值41B的該等像素值定義為1,並將短曝影像訊號23B中低於或等於短曝亮度臨界值41B的該等像素值定義為0,影像處理模組12B根據長曝亮度臨界值42B,將長曝影像訊號24B中高於長曝亮度臨界值42B的該等像素值定義為1,並將長曝影像訊號24B中低於或等於長曝亮度臨界值42B的該等像素值定義為0;最後,執行加權計算步驟S383,影像處理模組12B將二值化後的短曝影像訊號23B乘上短曝權重43B,該影像處理模組將二值化後的長曝影像訊號24B乘上長曝權重44B,以產生新的短曝影像訊號23B'以及長曝影像訊號24B',其中,長曝權重44B大於短曝權重43B。Please refer to FIG. 11 and FIG. 12. FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating the tone mapping step according to the second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating the actual execution process of the tone mapping step according to the second embodiment of the present invention . According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the dynamic image sensor 100 actually executes the steps of tone mapping as follows: First, execute the critical value generation step S381, the image processing module 12B takes the pixel values of the short-exposure image signal 23B The average value is used as the short-exposure brightness critical value 41B, and the average value of these pixel values of the long-exposure image signal 24B is used as the long-exposure brightness critical value 42B, which is used as the benchmark S381 of the high dynamic range synthesis step S382; after that, the high dynamic range is executed. In the range composition step S382, the image processing module 12B defines the pixel values higher than the short-exposure brightness threshold 41B in the short-exposure image signal 23B as 1 according to the short-exposure brightness threshold 41B, and sets the short-exposure image signal 23B as low The pixel values equal to or equal to the short-exposure brightness threshold value 41B are defined as 0, and the image processing module 12B converts the pixel values higher than the long-exposure brightness threshold value 42B in the long-exposure image signal 24B according to the long-exposure brightness threshold value 42B is defined as 1, and those pixel values in the long-exposure image signal 24B that are lower than or equal to the long-exposure brightness critical value 42B are defined as 0; finally, the weighted calculation step S383 is executed, and the image processing module 12B binarizes the The short-exposure image signal 23B is multiplied by the short-exposure weight 43B, and the image processing module multiplies the binarized long-exposure image signal 24B by the long-exposure weight 44B to generate a new short-exposure image signal 23B' and a long-exposure image signal 24B', wherein the long exposure weight 44B is greater than the short exposure weight 43B.

可以理解的是,在本實施例中,透過將短曝影像訊號23B以及將長曝影像訊號24B之該等像素值取平均值,以產生短曝亮度臨界值41B以及長曝亮度臨界值42B,短曝亮度臨界值41B以及長曝亮度臨界值42B係作為後續高動態範圍合成步驟S382的基準,使得本發明可以根據實際產生的像素值(亦即所處環境之明亮程度)作為二值化之基準,提升本發明之影像處理模組12B對於動態影像之明亮程度的靈敏度,以產生具有較佳明亮細節之動態影像,然而本發明不限於此。舉例而言,本發明之短曝亮度臨界值41B以及長曝亮度臨界值42B亦可以通過統計計算的方式事先儲存於影像處理模組12B,以符合多數使用環境,從而減少影像處理模組12B的運算,同時有效地節省電子裝置的電能,使用者可以視其需求選擇何種方式較為適切。It can be understood that, in this embodiment, the short-exposure brightness threshold 41B and the long-exposure brightness threshold 42B are generated by averaging the pixel values of the short-exposure image signal 23B and the long-exposure image signal 24B, The short-exposure brightness critical value 41B and the long-exposure brightness critical value 42B are used as the benchmark for the subsequent high dynamic range synthesis step S382, so that the present invention can use the actually generated pixel value (that is, the brightness of the environment) as the basis for binarization. The benchmark is to increase the sensitivity of the image processing module 12B of the present invention to the brightness of the dynamic image, so as to generate a dynamic image with better bright details, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the short-exposure brightness critical value 41B and the long-exposure brightness critical value 42B of the present invention can also be stored in the image processing module 12B in advance by means of statistical calculations, so as to meet most usage environments, thereby reducing the cost of the image processing module 12B. computing, while effectively saving the power of electronic devices, users can choose which method is more appropriate according to their needs.

藉此,根據本發明第二實施例之動態影像感測器,其係透過亮度感測模組13B感測環境中的亮度,使得影像處理模組12B可以根據亮度感測模組13B所感測之亮度調整夾擠下限以及夾擠上限,大幅縮減影像處理模組12B產生最佳短曝光時間以及最佳長曝光時間的運算時間,並且可以對應環境實現最符合當下環境的動態影像,具有廣泛適用姓。此外,根據本發明第二實施例之色調映射的方法,其係透過二值化處理短曝影像訊號23B以及長曝影像訊號24B,並將二值化後的短曝影像訊號乘上短曝權重43B,二值化後的長曝影像訊號24B乘上長曝權重44B,其中,長曝權重44B大於短曝權重43B。藉此,解決低亮度環境中,動態影像不清晰的問題,使得原本像素中高像素值愈高、低像素值愈低,讓影像中的物體輪廓對比增加,進一步提升動態影像之清晰度。Thus, the dynamic image sensor according to the second embodiment of the present invention senses the brightness in the environment through the brightness sensing module 13B, so that the image processing module 12B can sense the brightness according to the brightness sensing module 13B. Brightness adjustment pinch lower limit and pinch upper limit greatly reduce the calculation time of image processing module 12B to generate the optimal short exposure time and optimal long exposure time, and can realize the dynamic image that is most suitable for the current environment according to the environment, and has wide applicability . In addition, according to the tone mapping method of the second embodiment of the present invention, the short-exposure image signal 23B and the long-exposure image signal 24B are processed through binarization, and the binarized short-exposure image signal is multiplied by the short-exposure weight 43B, multiply the binarized long-exposure image signal 24B by the long-exposure weight 44B, wherein the long-exposure weight 44B is greater than the short-exposure weight 43B. In this way, the problem of unclear dynamic images in low-brightness environments is solved, so that the higher the value of the high pixel and the lower the value of the low pixel in the original pixel, the contrast of the outline of the object in the image is increased, and the clarity of the dynamic image is further improved.

請參閱圖13所示,圖13為根據本發明第三實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖13所示,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100C包括:感測陣列11C以及影像處理模組12C。本發明第三實施例相較於第一實施例,主要差別在於,感測陣列11C的第一曝光像素111C之數量為第二曝光像素112C之數量的1/3倍,但不以此為限。本實施例的相關說明可參照前文,在此不再贅述。Please refer to FIG. 13 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a third embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 13 , the dynamic image sensor 100C according to the present invention includes: a sensing array 11C and an image processing module 12C. Compared with the first embodiment, the third embodiment of the present invention is mainly different in that the number of the first exposure pixels 111C of the sensing array 11C is 1/3 times the number of the second exposure pixels 112C, but not limited thereto . Relevant descriptions of this embodiment may refer to the foregoing, and details are not repeated here.

請參閱圖14所示,圖14為根據本發明第四實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖14所示,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100D包括:感測陣列11D以及影像處理模組12D。本發明第四實施例相較於第一實施例,主要差別在於,感測陣列11D的第一曝光像素111D之數量為第二曝光像素112D之數量的3倍,但不以此為限。本實施例的相關說明可參照前文,在此不再贅述。Please refer to FIG. 14 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 14 , the dynamic image sensor 100D according to the present invention includes: a sensing array 11D and an image processing module 12D. Compared with the first embodiment, the fourth embodiment of the present invention mainly differs in that the number of the first exposure pixels 111D of the sensing array 11D is three times the number of the second exposure pixels 112D, but not limited thereto. Relevant descriptions of this embodiment may refer to the foregoing, and details are not repeated here.

可以理解的是,第一曝光像素111D與第二曝光像素112D的數量可以根據使用者之需求進行調整,不會大幅影響本發明所提供之動態影像產生方法的步驟,並且本發明所屬技術領域中具有通常知識者能夠基於上述示例再作出各種變化和調整,在此不再一一列舉。It can be understood that the number of the first exposure pixels 111D and the second exposure pixels 112D can be adjusted according to the needs of the user, without greatly affecting the steps of the method for generating a dynamic image provided by the present invention, and the present invention belongs to the technical field Those with ordinary knowledge can make various changes and adjustments based on the above examples, which will not be listed here.

請參閱圖15所示,圖15為根據本發明第五實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖15所示,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100E包括:感測陣列11E以及影像處理模組12E。本發明第五實施例相較於第一實施例,主要差別在於,根據本發明第四實施例之感測陣列11E可以包含有第一曝光像素111E、長曝光影像112E以及中曝光像素113E,其中,中曝光像素113E具有一中曝光時間,該中曝光時間的長短介於該短曝光時間以及該長曝光時間,且第一曝光像素111E、第二曝光像素112E與中曝光像素113E的數量之比例為1:1:2,但不以此為限。本實施例的相關說明可參照前文,在此不再贅述。如此一來,本發明進一步提供具有三種不同時曝光且曝光時間不同的動態影像感測器,使其可以進一步針對不同環境在同一幀的時間內就將不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像資訊進行曝光融合,達成增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效,進一步提升本發明之動態影像感測器的適用性。Please refer to FIG. 15 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 15 , the dynamic image sensor 100E according to the present invention includes: a sensing array 11E and an image processing module 12E. Compared with the first embodiment, the fifth embodiment of the present invention mainly differs in that the sensing array 11E according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention may include first exposure pixels 111E, long exposure images 112E and medium exposure pixels 113E, wherein , the medium exposure pixel 113E has a medium exposure time, the length of the medium exposure time is between the short exposure time and the long exposure time, and the ratio of the number of the first exposure pixel 111E, the second exposure pixel 112E and the medium exposure pixel 113E 1:1:2, but not limited to this. Relevant descriptions of this embodiment may refer to the foregoing, and details are not repeated here. In this way, the present invention further provides a dynamic image sensor with three different simultaneous exposures and different exposure times, so that it can further process image information that is not simultaneously exposed and with different exposure times in the same frame time for different environments. Exposure fusion achieves effects such as enhancing the definition and brightness of dynamic images, and further improves the applicability of the dynamic image sensor of the present invention.

請參閱圖16所示,圖16為根據本發明第六實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。如圖16所示,根據本發明之動態影像感測器100F包括:感測陣列11F以及影像處理模組12F。本發明第六實施例相較於第一實施例,主要差別在於,根據本發明第六實施例之感測陣列11E可以包含有第一曝光像素111 F、長曝光影像112F、極短曝光像素114F以及極長曝光像素115F,其中,極短曝光像素114F具有一極短曝光時間,極長曝光像素115F具有一極長曝光時間,該極短曝光時間的長短小於該短曝光時間,極長曝光時間的長短大於該長曝光時間,且第一曝光像素111 F、長曝光影像112F、極短曝光像素114F以及極長曝光像素115F之數量一致,但不以此為限。本實施例的相關說明可參照前文,在此不再贅述。如此一來,本發明進一步提供具有四種不同時曝光且曝光時間不同的動態影像感測器,使其可以進一步針對亮度極端的環境在同一幀的時間內就將不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像資訊進行曝光融合,達成增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效,進一步提升本發明之動態影像感測器的適用性。Please refer to FIG. 16 , which is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 16 , the dynamic image sensor 100F according to the present invention includes: a sensing array 11F and an image processing module 12F. Compared with the first embodiment, the sixth embodiment of the present invention is mainly different in that the sensing array 11E according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention may include first exposure pixels 111F, long exposure images 112F, and very short exposure pixels 114F And the extremely long exposure pixel 115F, wherein, the extremely short exposure pixel 114F has an extremely short exposure time, the extremely long exposure pixel 115F has an extremely long exposure time, and the length of the extremely short exposure time is smaller than the short exposure time, the extremely long exposure time is longer than the long exposure time, and the first exposure pixels 111F, the long exposure image 112F, the extremely short exposure pixels 114F and the extremely long exposure pixels 115F have the same number, but not limited thereto. Relevant descriptions of this embodiment may refer to the foregoing, and details are not repeated here. In this way, the present invention further provides a dynamic image sensor with four different simultaneous exposures and different exposure times, so that it can be further aimed at the environment with extreme brightness and will not be exposed at the same time and with different exposure times within the same frame time. The image information is subjected to exposure fusion to achieve effects such as enhancing the definition and brightness of the dynamic image, and further improving the applicability of the dynamic image sensor of the present invention.

藉此,本發明具有以下之實施功效及技術功效:Thus, the present invention has the following implementation effects and technical effects:

其一,藉由本發明之動態影像感測器為基礎,並搭配本發明所提供之動態影像產生方法,藉由第一曝光像素曝光短曝光時間,同時第二曝光像素曝光長曝光時間,並通過色調映射以及曝光融合產生高動態範圍影像資訊。如此一來,本發明利用長短曝光陣列的設計,在同一幀的時間內就可以將不同時曝光且曝光時間不同之影像資訊進行曝光融合,達成增強動態影像之清晰度以及亮度等功效,大幅提升辨識演算法針對動態影像進行辨識時的準確度,降低發生事故的風險。Firstly, based on the dynamic image sensor of the present invention, combined with the dynamic image generation method provided by the present invention, the first exposure pixel is exposed for a short exposure time, while the second exposure pixel is exposed for a long exposure time, and through Tone mapping and exposure fusion generate high dynamic range image information. In this way, the present invention utilizes the design of long and short exposure arrays to expose and fuse image information that is exposed at different times and with different exposure times within the same frame time, thereby achieving the effects of enhancing the clarity and brightness of moving images, and greatly improving The accuracy of the identification algorithm for identification of dynamic images reduces the risk of accidents.

其二,藉由本發明之動態影像感測器為基礎,並搭配本發明所提供之動態影像產生方法,藉由影像處理模組將待測短曝光時間增加短曝光定值形成新的待測短曝光時間,或者將待測長曝光時間減少長曝光定值形成新的待測長曝光時間,以產生最佳短曝光時間以及最佳長曝光時間。藉此,本發明用空間解析度換取額外的曝光資訊,有利於在短時間內收斂至最佳曝光時間,使得高動態範圍影像資訊曝光良好。此外,透過夾擠之運算方式,使得本發明之自動曝光時間方法可以實現一種動態運算的方式產生最佳曝光時間,以適應各種拍攝環境,同時降低產生最佳曝光時間的運算時間,大幅提升本發明之效率以及適用性。Second, based on the dynamic image sensor of the present invention, combined with the dynamic image generation method provided by the present invention, the short exposure time to be measured is increased by the short exposure value to form a new short exposure time to be measured by the image processing module. Exposure time, or reduce the long exposure time to be measured by the long exposure fixed value to form a new long exposure time to be measured, so as to generate the best short exposure time and the best long exposure time. In this way, the present invention exchanges the spatial resolution for additional exposure information, which is beneficial to converge to the optimal exposure time in a short time, so that the exposure of high dynamic range image information is good. In addition, through the computing method of pinching, the automatic exposure time method of the present invention can realize a dynamic calculation method to generate the optimal exposure time to adapt to various shooting environments, and at the same time reduce the computing time for generating the optimal exposure time, greatly improving the cost. Efficiency and applicability of the invention.

其三,根據本發明之動態影像產生方法的色調映射有別於習知技術色調映射演算法,透過二值化處理短曝影像訊號以及長曝影像訊號,並將二值化後的短曝影像訊號乘上短曝權重,二值化後的長曝影像訊號乘上長曝權重,其中,長曝權重大於短曝權重。藉此,解決低亮度環境中,動態影像不清晰的問題,使得原本像素中高亮度者值愈高、低亮度者值愈低,讓影像中的物體輪廓對比增加,進一步提升動態影像之清晰度。Third, the tone mapping of the dynamic image generation method according to the present invention is different from the tone mapping algorithm of the prior art. The short-exposure image signal and the long-exposure image signal are processed through binarization, and the binarized short-exposure image The signal is multiplied by the short-exposure weight, and the binarized long-exposure image signal is multiplied by the long-exposure weight, wherein the long-exposure weight is greater than the short-exposure weight. This solves the problem of unclear dynamic images in low-brightness environments, making the pixels with high brightness have higher values and those with low brightness lower, which increases the contrast of object outlines in the image and further improves the clarity of dynamic images.

以上係藉由特定的具體實施例說明本發明之實施方式,所屬技術領域具有通常知識者可由本說明書所揭示之內容輕易地瞭解本發明之其他優點及功效。The above is to illustrate the implementation of the present invention through specific specific examples. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification.

以上所述僅為本發明之較佳實施例,並非用以限定本發明之範圍;凡其它未脫離本發明所揭示之精神下所完成之等效改變或修飾,均應包含在下述之專利範圍內。The above descriptions are only preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention; all other equivalent changes or modifications that do not deviate from the spirit disclosed in the present invention shall be included in the scope of the following patents Inside.

100、100A、100B、100C、100D、100E、100F:動態影像感測器 11、11A、11B、11C、11D、11E、11F:感測陣列 111、111A、111B、111C、111D、111E、111F:第一曝光像素 112、112A、112B、112C、112D、112E、112F:第二曝光像素 113E:中曝光像素 114F:極短曝光像素 115F:極長曝光像素 12、12A、12B、12C、12D、12E、12F:影像處理模組 21:短曝光時間 22:長曝光時間 23、23A、23B、23B':短曝影像訊號 24、24A、24B、24B':長曝影像訊號 25、25A:短曝影像資訊 26、26A:長曝影像資訊 27、27A:高動態範圍影像資訊 31A、31B:待測短曝光時間 32A、32B:待測長曝光時間 33A、33B:待測短曝影像訊號 34A、34B:待測長曝影像訊號 35A、35B:夾擠下限 36A、36B:夾擠上限 37A、37B:短曝光定值 38A、38B:長曝光定值 39A、39B:最佳短曝光時間 40A、40B:最佳長曝光時間 41B:短曝亮度臨界值 42B:長曝亮度臨界值 43B:短曝權重 44B:長曝權重 51A:像素值 S11、S25、S37:同時曝光步驟 S12、S26、S38:色調映射步驟 S13、S27、S39:曝光融合步驟 S14、S28、S40:輸出步驟 S21、S32:測試步驟 S22、S33:判定步驟 S23、S34:調整步驟 S24、S35:最佳曝光時間產生步驟 S31:上下限調整步驟 S36:疊加步驟 S381:臨界值產生步驟 S382:高動態範圍合成步驟 S383:加權計算步驟 100, 100A, 100B, 100C, 100D, 100E, 100F: Dynamic image sensor 11, 11A, 11B, 11C, 11D, 11E, 11F: sensing array 111, 111A, 111B, 111C, 111D, 111E, 111F: first exposure pixels 112, 112A, 112B, 112C, 112D, 112E, 112F: second exposure pixels 113E: Medium exposure pixels 114F: extremely short exposure pixels 115F: extremely long exposure pixels 12, 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, 12E, 12F: image processing module 21: Short exposure time 22: Long exposure time 23, 23A, 23B, 23B': short exposure image signal 24, 24A, 24B, 24B': long exposure image signal 25, 25A: short exposure image information 26, 26A: Long exposure image information 27, 27A: High dynamic range image information 31A, 31B: short exposure time to be tested 32A, 32B: long exposure time to be tested 33A, 33B: short-exposure video signal to be tested 34A, 34B: Long exposure video signal to be tested 35A, 35B: pinching lower limit 36A, 36B: pinching upper limit 37A, 37B: short exposure fixed value 38A, 38B: long exposure fixed value 39A, 39B: best short exposure time 40A, 40B: best long exposure time 41B: short exposure brightness threshold 42B: Long exposure brightness threshold 43B: Short exposure weight 44B: Long exposure weight 51A: Pixel value S11, S25, S37: Simultaneous exposure steps S12, S26, S38: tone mapping steps S13, S27, S39: exposure fusion steps S14, S28, S40: output steps S21, S32: test steps S22, S33: Judgment step S23, S34: adjustment steps S24, S35: optimal exposure time generation steps S31: Upper and lower limit adjustment steps S36: Overlay steps S381: Critical value generation step S382: High dynamic range synthesis steps S383: weighted calculation steps

圖1為根據本發明之動態影像感測器的示意圖; 圖2為說明執行本發明之動態影像產生方法的步驟方塊圖; 圖3為說明根據本發明之動態影像產生方法實際執行過程之步驟流程圖; 圖4為根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖; 圖5為說明執行本發明第一實施例之動態影像產生方法的步驟方塊圖; 圖6為說明根據本發明第一實施例之動態影像產生方法實際執行過程之步驟流程圖; 圖7為說明根據本發明第一實施例之色調映射演算法的示意圖; 圖8為根據本發明第二實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖; 圖9為說明執行本發明第二實施例之動態影像產生方法的步驟方塊圖; 圖10為說明根據本發明第二實施例之疊加步驟實際執行過程之流程圖; 圖11為說明根據本發明第二實施例之色調映射步驟的方塊圖; 圖12為說明根據本發明第二實施例之色調映射步驟實際執行過程之流程圖; 圖13為根據本發明第三實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖; 圖14為根據本發明第四實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖; 圖15為根據本發明第五實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖;以及 圖16為根據本發明第六實施例之動態影像感測器的示意圖。 1 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the steps of the method for generating a dynamic image of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a flow chart illustrating the steps of the actual execution process of the dynamic image generation method according to the present invention; 4 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 5 is a block diagram illustrating the steps of the method for generating a dynamic image according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 6 is a flow chart illustrating the steps of the actual execution process of the dynamic image generation method according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a tone mapping algorithm according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 8 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating the steps of the method for generating a dynamic image according to the second embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating the actual execution process of the superposition step according to the second embodiment of the present invention; 11 is a block diagram illustrating a tone mapping step according to a second embodiment of the present invention; 12 is a flow chart illustrating the actual execution of the tone mapping step according to the second embodiment of the present invention; 13 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a third embodiment of the present invention; 14 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; 15 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a dynamic image sensor according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

100:動態影像感測器 100:Motion image sensor

11:感測陣列 11:Sensing array

111:第一曝光像素 111: First exposure pixel

112:第二曝光像素 112: second exposure pixel

12:影像處理模組 12: Image processing module

Claims (8)

一種高幀率高動態範圍之動態影像產生方法,其係應用於一動態影像感測器接收動態範圍之動態影像的環境中,該動態影像感測器包含一第一曝光像素、一第二曝光像素以及一影像處理模組,該第一曝光像素以及該第二曝光像素耦接於該影像處理模組,該動態影像產生方法包含下列步驟:一同時曝光步驟,該第一曝光像素曝光一短曝光時間產生一短曝影像訊號,同時該第二曝光像素曝光一長曝光時間產生一長曝影像訊號;一色調映射步驟,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像訊號以及該長曝影像訊號執行一色調映射(tone mapping)演算法,產生一短曝影像資訊以及一長曝影像資訊;一曝光融合步驟,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像資訊以及該長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合(exposure fusion),產生一高動態範圍影像資訊;以及一輸出步驟,該影像處理模組輸出該高動態範圍影像資訊,其中,於該同時曝光步驟之前,該動態影像產生方法進一步包含一自動曝光時間方法,該自動曝光時間方法包含下列步驟:一測試步驟,該第一曝光像素曝光一待測短曝光時間,同時該第二曝光像素曝光一待測長曝光時間,以產生一待測短曝影像訊號以及一待測長曝影像訊號;一判定步驟,該影像處理模組確認該待測短曝影像訊號是否高於一夾擠下限,並確認該待測長曝影像訊號是否低於一夾擠上限;一調整步驟,該影像處理模組將該待測短曝光時間增加一短曝光定值以產生新的該待測短曝光時間,或者將該待測長曝光時間減少一長曝光定值以產生新的該待測長曝光時間;以及一最佳曝光時間產生步驟,該影像處理模組根據該待測短曝光時間以及該待測長曝光時間產生一最佳短曝光時間以及一最佳長曝光時間,以及其中,若該判定步驟判定該待測短曝影像訊號高於該夾擠下限,並且該待測長曝影像訊號低於該夾擠上限,該判定步驟結束後執行該最佳曝光時間產生步驟,且該同時曝光步驟中,該第一曝光像素曝光該最佳短曝光時間,同時該 第二曝光像素曝光該最佳長曝光時間;反之,該判定步驟結束後執行該調整步驟並重複執行該測試步驟。 A dynamic image generation method with high frame rate and high dynamic range, which is applied in an environment where a dynamic image sensor receives a dynamic image in a dynamic range, and the dynamic image sensor includes a first exposure pixel and a second exposure pixel Pixels and an image processing module, the first exposure pixel and the second exposure pixel are coupled to the image processing module, the dynamic image generation method includes the following steps: a simultaneous exposure step, the first exposure pixel is exposed for a short The exposure time generates a short-exposure image signal, and the second exposure pixel is exposed for a long exposure time to generate a long-exposure image signal; a tone mapping step, the image processing module executes the short-exposure image signal and the long-exposure image signal A tone mapping (tone mapping) algorithm to generate a short exposure image information and a long exposure image information; an exposure fusion step, the image processing module performs exposure fusion (exposure) on the short exposure image information and the long exposure image information fusion), generating a high dynamic range image information; and an output step, the image processing module outputs the high dynamic range image information, wherein, before the simultaneous exposure step, the dynamic image generation method further includes an automatic exposure time method , the automatic exposure time method includes the following steps: a testing step, the first exposure pixel is exposed for a short exposure time to be measured, and the second exposure pixel is exposed for a long exposure time to be measured, so as to generate a short exposure image signal to be measured and a long-exposure image signal to be tested; a determination step, the image processing module confirms whether the short-exposure image signal to be tested is higher than a pinch lower limit, and confirms whether the long-exposure image signal to be tested is lower than a pinch upper limit ; an adjustment step, the image processing module increases the short exposure time to be measured by a short exposure constant value to generate a new short exposure time to be measured, or decreases the long exposure time to be measured by a long exposure constant value to generate The new long exposure time to be measured; and an optimal exposure time generation step, the image processing module generates an optimal short exposure time and an optimal long exposure time according to the short exposure time to be measured and the long exposure time to be measured time, and wherein, if the judging step determines that the signal of the short-exposure image to be tested is higher than the lower limit of pinch, and the signal of the long-exposure image to be tested is lower than the upper limit of pinch, the optimal exposure time is executed after the judging step generation step, and in the simultaneous exposure step, the first exposure pixel is exposed for the optimal short exposure time, and at the same time the The second exposure pixel is exposed for the optimal long exposure time; on the contrary, the adjusting step is executed after the determining step and the testing step is repeatedly executed. 如請求項1所述的動態影像產生方法,其中,該色調映射演算法係選自伽馬曲線(Gamma curve)演算法以及專業色彩編碼系統曲線(Academy Color Encoding System curve)演算法其中之一。 The dynamic image generation method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the tone mapping algorithm is selected from one of a Gamma curve algorithm and an Academy Color Encoding System curve algorithm. 如請求項1所述的自動曝光時間方法,其中,該動態影像感測器內儲存有一短曝光時間上限值以及一長曝光時間下限值,該短曝光時間上限值係為該待測短曝光時間的最大值,該長曝光時間下限值係為該待測長曝光時間的最小值。 The automatic exposure time method as described in claim item 1, wherein, a short exposure time upper limit and a long exposure time lower limit are stored in the dynamic image sensor, and the short exposure time upper limit is the The maximum value of the short exposure time, the lower limit of the long exposure time is the minimum value of the long exposure time to be measured. 如請求項3所述的自動曝光時間方法,其中,若該待測短曝光時間為該短曝光時間上限值,且該判定步驟中該待測短曝影像訊號仍低於該夾擠下限,則該自動曝光時間方法進一步包含有一疊加步驟,該疊加步驟系為該影像處理模組將已產生的該待測短曝影像訊號或將已產生的該待測短曝影像訊號與該待測長曝影像訊號進行疊加,以產生該短曝影像訊號。 The automatic exposure time method as described in Claim 3, wherein, if the short exposure time to be measured is the upper limit of the short exposure time, and the signal of the short exposure image to be measured is still lower than the lower limit of pinching in the determining step, Then the automatic exposure time method further includes a superposition step, the superposition step is that the image processing module combines the generated short-exposure image signal to be measured or the generated short-exposure image signal to be measured with the long-exposure image signal to be measured The short-exposure image signal is superimposed to generate the short-exposure image signal. 如請求項1所述的自動曝光時間方法,其中,該動態影像感測器進一步包含有一亮度感測模組,其係耦接於該影像處理模組,該亮度感測模組係用於感測該動態影像感測器所處環境的亮度,該曝光時間調整方法進一步包含有一上下限調整步驟,該影像處理模組係根據該亮度感測模組所感測之亮度調整該夾擠下限以及該夾擠上限,當亮度感測模組感測之亮度低於一低亮度值,則對應地降低該夾擠下限,當該亮度感測模組感測之亮度高於一高亮度值,則對應地升高該夾擠上限。 The automatic exposure time method as described in claim 1, wherein the dynamic image sensor further includes a brightness sensing module, which is coupled to the image processing module, and the brightness sensing module is used for sensing Measure the brightness of the environment where the dynamic image sensor is located. The exposure time adjustment method further includes an upper and lower limit adjustment step. The image processing module adjusts the pinching lower limit and the brightness according to the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module. The upper limit of pinching, when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is lower than a low brightness value, the lower limit of pinching is correspondingly reduced, and when the brightness sensed by the brightness sensing module is higher than a high brightness value, the corresponding Raise the upper pinch limit. 如請求項1所述的動態影像產生方法,其中,該色調映射步驟還包含有:一臨界值產生步驟,該影像處理模組將該短曝影像訊號之該等像素值取平均值產生一短曝亮度臨界值,並將該長曝影像訊號之該等像素值取平均值產生一長曝亮度臨界值;一高動態範圍合成步驟,該影像處理模組根據該短曝亮度臨界值,將該短曝影像訊號中高於該短曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為1,並將該短曝影像訊 號中低於或等於該短曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為0,該影像處理模組根據該長曝亮度臨界值,將該長曝影像訊號中高於該長曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為1,並將該長曝影像訊號中低於或等於該長曝亮度臨界值的該等像素值定義為0;以及一加權計算步驟,該影像處理模組將二值化後的該短曝影像訊號乘上一短曝權重,該影像處理模組將二值化後的該長曝影像訊號乘上一長曝權重,其中,該長曝權重大於該短曝權重。 The dynamic image generation method as described in claim 1, wherein the tone mapping step further includes: a critical value generation step, the image processing module averages the pixel values of the short-exposure image signal to generate a short Exposure brightness threshold, and average the pixel values of the long-exposure image signal to generate a long-exposure brightness threshold; a high dynamic range synthesis step, the image processing module according to the short-exposure brightness threshold, the In the short-exposure image signal, the pixel values higher than the short-exposure brightness threshold are defined as 1, and the short-exposure image signal The pixel values in the signal that are lower than or equal to the short-exposure brightness threshold are defined as 0, and the image processing module determines the pixel values in the long-exposure image signal that are higher than the long-exposure brightness threshold according to the long-exposure brightness threshold define the pixel values as 1, and define the pixel values lower than or equal to the long-exposure brightness threshold in the long-exposure image signal as 0; and a weighting calculation step, the image processing module binarizes The short-exposure image signal is multiplied by a short-exposure weight, and the image processing module multiplies the binarized long-exposure image signal by a long-exposure weight, wherein the long-exposure weight is greater than the short-exposure weight. 一種高幀率高動態範圍之動態影像感測器,其係應用於接收動態範圍之動態影像的環境中,該動態影像感測器包含有:一感測陣列,其係包含複數個第一曝光像素以及複數個第二曝光像素,該等第一曝光像素具有一短曝光時間,該等第二曝光像素具有一長曝光時間;以及一影像處理模組,其係耦接於該感測陣列;其中,該動態影像感測器執行一同時曝光步驟:該第一曝光像素曝光該短曝光時間產生一短曝影像訊號,同時該第二曝光像素曝光該長曝光時間產生一長曝影像訊號,其中,該動態影像感測器執行一色調映射步驟:該影像處理模組將該短曝影像訊號以及該長曝影像訊號執行一色調映射演算法,產生一短曝影像資訊以及一長曝影像資訊,其中,該動態影像感測器執行一曝光融合步驟:該影像處理模組將該短曝影像資訊以及該長曝影像資訊進行曝光融合,產生一高動態範圍影像資訊,其中,於該同時曝光步驟之前,該動態影像感測器進一步執行一自動曝光時間方法,該自動曝光時間方法包含下列步驟:一測試步驟,該第一曝光像素曝光一待測短曝光時間,同時該第二曝光像素曝光一待測長曝光時間,以產生一待測短曝影像訊號以及一待測長曝影像訊號;一判定步驟,該影像處理模組確認該待測短曝影像訊號是否高於一夾擠下限,並確認該待測長曝影像訊號是否低於一夾擠上限; 一調整步驟,該影像處理模組將該待測短曝光時間增加一短曝光定值以產生新的該待測短曝光時間,或者將該待測長曝光時間減少一長曝光定值以產生新的該待測長曝光時間;以及一最佳曝光時間產生步驟,該影像處理模組根據該待測短曝光時間以及該待測長曝光時間產生一最佳短曝光時間以及一最佳長曝光時間,以及其中,若該判定步驟判定該待測短曝影像訊號高於該夾擠下限,並且該待測長曝影像訊號低於該夾擠上限,該判定步驟結束後執行該最佳曝光時間產生步驟,且該同時曝光步驟中,該第一曝光像素曝光該最佳短曝光時間,同時該第二曝光像素曝光該最佳長曝光時間;反之,該判定步驟結束後執行該調整步驟並重複執行該測試步驟。 A dynamic image sensor with high frame rate and high dynamic range, which is applied in the environment of receiving dynamic images with dynamic range, the dynamic image sensor includes: a sensing array, which includes a plurality of first exposures Pixels and a plurality of second exposure pixels, the first exposure pixels have a short exposure time, the second exposure pixels have a long exposure time; and an image processing module, which is coupled to the sensing array; Wherein, the dynamic image sensor performs a simultaneous exposure step: the first exposure pixel is exposed to the short exposure time to generate a short exposure image signal, and the second exposure pixel is exposed to the long exposure time to generate a long exposure image signal, wherein , the dynamic image sensor performs a tone mapping step: the image processing module executes a tone mapping algorithm on the short-exposure image signal and the long-exposure image signal to generate short-exposure image information and long-exposure image information, Wherein, the dynamic image sensor performs an exposure fusion step: the image processing module performs exposure fusion on the short-exposure image information and the long-exposure image information to generate a high dynamic range image information, wherein, in the simultaneous exposure step Before, the dynamic image sensor further implements an automatic exposure time method, and the automatic exposure time method includes the following steps: a test step, the first exposure pixel is exposed for a short exposure time to be tested, and the second exposure pixel is exposed for a short exposure time at the same time The long exposure time to be measured is used to generate a short-exposure image signal to be measured and a long-exposure image signal to be measured; a determination step, the image processing module confirms whether the short-exposure image signal to be tested is higher than a pinch lower limit, and Confirming whether the signal of the long-exposure image to be tested is lower than a pinch upper limit; an adjustment step, the image processing module increases the short exposure time to be measured by a short exposure constant value to generate a new short exposure time to be measured, or decreases the long exposure time to be measured by a long exposure constant value to generate a new The long exposure time to be measured; and an optimal exposure time generation step, the image processing module generates an optimal short exposure time and an optimal long exposure time according to the short exposure time to be measured and the long exposure time to be measured , and wherein, if the judging step judges that the signal of the short-exposure image to be tested is higher than the lower limit of pinching, and the signal of the long-exposure image to be tested is lower than the upper limit of pinching, the optimal exposure time is executed after the judging step to generate step, and in the simultaneous exposure step, the first exposure pixel is exposed for the optimal short exposure time, while the second exposure pixel is exposed for the optimal long exposure time; otherwise, the adjustment step is executed after the determination step and repeated The test steps. 如請求項7所述的動態影像感測器,其中,該等第一曝光像素與該等第二曝光像素交錯排列,且該等第一曝光像素的數量為該等第二曝光像素的數量之1倍、2倍以及3倍其中之一。 The dynamic image sensor according to claim 7, wherein the first exposure pixels and the second exposure pixels are arranged alternately, and the number of the first exposure pixels is less than the number of the second exposure pixels One of 1x, 2x and 3x.
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